bejewelled

Milan, Italy
Shooting up into the dome of the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II during a recent trip to Milan over the Thanksgiving holiday, I was reminded of a glittering kaleidoscope. Built between 1865 and 1871, it is a classic double vaulted arcade classic of the time. The Galleria serves as an impressive connector between the Piazza del Duomo and Piazza della Scala. This is NOT shopping at the local mall!

reopened for business

Washington Square Park / New York, New York
The first phase of the Washington Square Park reconstruction, which began December 10, 2007, was reopened last month. Phase two will include substantial landscaping and some regrading to improve sight lines across the space. About the only object that is not being touched by the reconstruction is the marble arch, modeled after the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, constructed in 1892.

chinese lanterns

Canal Street [堅尼街] / New York, New York
Unlike most other urban Chinatowns, Manhattan's Chinatown is both a residential area as well as commercial area. Most population estimates are in the range of 90,000 to 100,000 residents making it the second most populous Chinatown after San Francisco. Canal Street, west of Broadway (especially on the North side), is filled with Chinese street vendors notoriously known for selling imitation perfumes, watches, and hand-bags, which are largely purchased by tourists.

urban waterfalls

Brooklyn Bridge / New York, New York
Last summer, parts of New York City were bathed in giant waterfalls when the grandest public art project since Cristo's Gates in Central Park, hit the "water" (no pun intended). New York City Waterfalls, a $15 million art project paid for with private donations, ran from mid-June through mid-October. Four mechanical fountains were installed on the shores of Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Governors Island standing from 90' to 120' tall. This one was running under the Brooklyn Bridge.

perfect fit

Old Town / Bucharest, Romania
While walking through Old Town Bucharest, I happen to notice the reflection of this older structure against its newer counterpart across the street. And what a perfect connection it made to the roof line of the building next door.

the maritime

West 16th St / New York, New York
Up until the mid-1960's, this building served as the headquarters for the National Maritime Union. Its signature portal windows look out over the Hudson River, carrying through the nauticalness of it all. It has been converted into a "hot spot" boutique hotel, fitting right in with the quirkiness of the meatpacking district - an area which diligently serves the nightly party needs of the B&T crowd.

mission accomplished

Times Square / New York, New York
As if Times Square wasn't already a disaster, last week Mayor Bloomberg began his 6 month experiment of closing off Broadway from 46th St to 42nd St to vehicular traffic. While the concept isn't so bad as the city can always use less taxi, bus and car traffic in already congested areas - whoever made the decision to put the cheap plastic lawn chairs out there so tourists can rest their asses and feel right at home - should be dismissed. If the objective is to make an already tacky area even more tacky - mission accomplished.

plain & fancy

Lower East Side / New York, New York
In a previous posting, I commented about the contrasts that make Manhattan such a visually interesting place. Here's another great example.

mix it up

East Village / New York, New York
One thing I love about New York - the city loves to mix up its architecture. The ugly blandness of mid-town aside, most of the city's other neighborhoods all seem to have an interesting mix of old against new.

layers

North Moore Street (Tribeca) / New York, New York
This column is certainly showing its age - with layer upon layer of paint - most of which is peeling off.

michelin man cometh

Fifth Avenue / New York, New York
Yet another shot of the newly renovated Guggenheim Museum at Fifth and E 89th St. Looks pretty good for fifty years old - kind like me.

converging spaces

Washington Convention Center / Washington, DC
I've posted several previous photos of the art and architecture of this building. For public architecture and for a convention center, it definitely has some unique spacial experiences.

survival

Cortlandt Alley (Tribeca) / New York, New York
While we have Central Park and a plethora of other smaller pockets of nature scattered throughout the city, it is urban survivors like this that deserve the recognition. Manhattan is a harsh environment and when I see strands of green growing out of concrete pushing upwards to find both sunlight and nourishment - I wish them nothing but success.

jesus saves nyc

Franklin Street (Tribeca) / New York, New York
One thing to say about New York City, there's lots of interesting street art - some good; some not so good.

sea of yellow

5th Avenue / New York, New York
Oh to be back home in NYC - engulfed by the endless wave of ubiquitious yellow taxis.

pretty in pink

Plaza San Martin / Buenos Aires, Argentina
The beautiful Plaza San Martin in the Retiro neighborhood of Buenos Aires was in full bllom of the Silk Floss Tree, also known as the "drunken tree". After taking advantage of the marvelously delicious and inexpensive Malbecs, I can appreciate the name.

waiting for ..

C Train Platform @ W 23rd / New York, New York
It's a strange phenomena, waiting for the subway. People continually "bob" their heads out from behind the steel columns on the platform to see if they can spot a distant headlight in the darkness - as if it will somehow get the train there sooner.

movin' on up..

Upper East Side / New York, New York
..to the East Side, to a dee-luxe apartment in the sky; movin' on up, to the East Side, finally got a piece of the pie. (as seen looking out over The Pond in Central Park).

CPW in the abstract

Central Park West / New York, New York

Taken from within the fountains of Columbus Circle, looking north up Central Park West - after one too many drinks in Hells Kitchen, you might think.

spring is in the air - almost

The Lake @ Central Park / New York, New York
Tomorrow it is supposed to hit the low 70's in New York City - spring is definitely in the air - which means Central Park will soon begin to blossom with colorful activity washing away the greys of winter.