Upcoming Events - September 2015

Dear Friends of LANDMARK WEST!:

We have some exciting events coming up here at LW! to get you through these dog days of summer. Here is a sampling of our programs taking place in September:

Learn the ABCs of Central Park with Gerald Lynas!

Central Park

Monday, September 7, 10:00am 

A great Labor Day activity for the whole family!

Through the alphabet and numbers, artist/author G. Augustine Lynas introduces youngsters to the wonder and beauty of New York's Central Park, a NYC Scenic Landmark. First, we will discover where Lynas found inspiration for his book The ABCs of Central Park, then we will use our own keen eyes to snap candid photos of what Lynas calls "alpha-branches" and "number-limbs!" Check out Lynas' book here and see some pictures from our last tour with Lynas here. 

$5 per person. To make a reservation, please email landmarkwest@landmarkwest.org or call (212) 496-8110.

Roberta Brandes Gratz Book Talk Celebrates Launch of 
We're Still Here Ya Bastards: How the People of New Orleans Rebuilt Their City

Book Culture, 450 Columbus Avenue (between 81st & 82nd) 
Wednesday, September 9, 6:30pm

Join LW! as we remember Hurricane Katrina (2005) and celebrate 10 years of steady urban regeneration in the historic city of New Orleans. Award-winning journalist, urban critic, and author Roberta Brandes Gratz will guide us through her newly released publication, We're Still Here Ya Bastards: How the People of New Orleans Rebuilt Their City. Gratz's book provides a powerful account of how community activists are leading their city's recovery. 

$15, $10 for LW! members. To make a reservation, please email landmarkwest@landmarkwest.org or call (212) 496-8110. Reservations also available through Eventbrite by clicking here.

An Architectural Walking Tour of Lincoln Center with architectural historian Thomas Mellins

Lincoln Center

Wednesday, September 30, 6:00pm

Join us as we explore Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts with Thomas Mellins, an architectural historian, independent curator, and author who has curated exhibitions for Jazz at Lincoln Center, the National Building Museum, the Yale School of Architecture, and many others. Mellins will lead us through the country's largest performing arts center, a space which represents the unity and talent of several prominent architects of the mid-20th century.  Then-starchitects Max Abramovitz, Pietro Belluschi, Gordon Bunshaft, Wallace Harrison, Eero Saarinen, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, and Phillip Johnson collaborated to create a world-class center of the arts in Manhattan, defined by an overall aesthetic that synthesized Classicism and Modernism. The tour will also highlight the recent redevelopment project, designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro. Lincoln Center is on LW!'s Wish List of landmark designation priorities, and it was determined eligible for the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.

$25, $15 for LW! members. To make a reservation, please email landmarkwest@landmarkwest.org or call (212) 496-8110. Reservations also available through Eventbrite by clicking here.

    

NYPL Wows with Francis Morrone as a Guide

NYPL Rose Reading Room (photo by Paul Lowry)

Noted architectural historian Francis Morrone delivered a beautifully illustrated slide lecture on the architecture and decoration of the 42nd Street Library to LANDMARK WEST! guests and fellow advocates for the 42nd Street Library last week. Co-authored with the late great Henry Hope Reed, Francis Morrone's book, The New York Public Library: The Architecture and Decoration of the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, presents the fascinating history of the library building and its many exquisitely-detailed architectural ornaments. With lush photography and his characteristically engaging style, Francis drew our attention to the details that make the 42nd Street Library a rich Beaux Arts treasure, of which the sumptuous marble-clad Astor Hall,  the intricately carved wooden ceiling of Gottesman Hall by master carver Maurice Grieve, and the monumental bronze flagpole bases are just a few examples.

A sectional view of the New York Public Library (1911)
via NYPL

A New York City Individual Landmark and widely regarded as a masterpiece designed by the firm Carrère and Hastings in 1911, this careful study of the library's significance is newly relevant in the context of the Central Library Plan. In addition to closing and selling off two branch libraries, a major component of the plan threatens to demolish the historic book stacks and install a new circulating library. The book stacks, which sit directly below the main reading room and provide structural support for the expansive space above, were an innovative feature of the library's original program as conceived by the library's first director, John Shaw Billings. The placement of the stacks below the reading room allowed for the swift delivery of materials to library patrons. 

With the destructive plans to alter the library looming, Francis Morrone's discussion of the library's features made the value of the building's integrity explicitly clear. As Ada Louise Huxtable said in the Wall Street Journal in December 2012, "You don't 'update' a masterpiece." 

For more information on the Central Library Plan and to get involved in efforts to save the library, get in touch with the Committee to Save the New York Public Library and Citizens Defending Libraries. If you'd like a copy of Francis Morrone's book for $10 off the list price, contact the LW! office at 212-496-8110 or landmarkwest@landmarkwest.org.

SPECIAL INVITATION :: For Residents of West End Avenue and Environs

West End Avenue Walking Tour

For Residents of the proposed West End - Collegiate Historic District Extension

** UPDATE **  Since first announcing this FREE public tour, we've had an overwhelming response from residents of the West End Avenue neighborhood who want to learn more about this area!  To accommodate even more people we've added a second tour of the area ...

View of West End Avenue.

LW! invites you on an early evening walking tour of a section within the proposed extensions of the historic districts along West End Avenue, focusing on the area between 70th and 79th Streets.  A tour will be led by Andrew S. Dolkart, the Director of the Historic Preservation Program at Columbia University's School of Architect, Planning and Preservation.  AND NOW a second tour will be led by preservation consultant Gregory Dietrich.

West End Avenue, an assortment of grand residences, houses of worship and educational institutions, offers a cohesive picture of the development of the Upper West Side.  A strikingly consistent streetwall of uniform cornice heights, harmonious materials and creative interpretations of historical styles showcases the work of many of the city's most prolific, if less recognized, architects, such as Schwartz and Gross, Neville and Bagge, and brothers George and Edward Blum.

LW! invites our friends and neighbors residing in the proposed West End Avenue historic district extensions, of which there are three, to attend at no charge.  This is a terrific opportunity to learn more about the history of West End Avenue prior to the Tuesday, June 28th, public hearing at the Landmarks Preservation Commission.

Not a resident of West End Avenue?  Contact us about being added to the tour waiting list.

*Preference will be given to those who did not already attend the March 9th informational breakfast session of the proposed historic district extensions.  Space is limited.  To RSVP call (212) 496-8110 or email landmarkwest@landmarkwest.org.

REPORT from the FIELD :: Social Media Leaders Share their Secrets

Social media success! Representatives from community organizations throughout the city and neighborhood advocates (individuals curious about how social media can give greater voice to their neighborhoods) braved the menacing weather outside for last night's social media roundtable.

From the sleek Steelcase WorkLife Center, our social media mavens shared their insider tips with an enthusiastic audience. Here, a brief recap and a peek at photos from the evening! Attended the event? Take the survey; tell us what you thought of it!

Following a welcome by LW!'s Cristiana Peña, our moderator, NearSay.com's Trevor Sumner kicked off the roundtable, facilitating discussion among our six panelists*:

NearSay - Trevor Sumner, co-founder & CMO. Roundtable moderator.
(Trevor on Twitter: @trevorsumner; NearSay on Twitter: @NearSayNY and @NSayUpperWest)

LANDMARK WEST! - Cristiana Peña, Senior Director of Preservation
(Cristiana on NearSay; LW! on Twitter: @landmarkwest)

Flatiron BID - Jennifer Brown, Executive Director
(Jennifer on Twitter: @FlatironBID)

Fashion Center - Ryan Daly
(On Twitter: @FashionCenterNY)

34th St. Partnership - Tricia Lewis, Director of Digital Media
(Tricia on Twitter: @34thStNYC)

Fourth Arts Block- Tamara Greenfield, Executive Director; and Shaun Newport, Program Manager
(Tamara and Shaun on Twitter: @FourthArtsBlock)

*Listed in order of seating, left to right, in accompanying video and photos.

Drawing on their social media adventures, panelists clued the audience in to how they've embraced social media outlets to broadcast their organizations' messages and reach a wider audience. Weren't able to make it? Never fear -- you can watch video of the discussion on LW!'s YouTube channel. Metaphors seemed to be popular last night! Some of our favorites:

Trevor, NearSay.com: Twitter is like a cocktail party with friendly banter. If you meet someone you're interested in knowing better, you invite them back to Facebook, which serves as your clubhouse. And if someone in turn then wants to know more about you, they can visit your website, which is your library, the place you store your wealth of resources.

Shaun, Fourth Arts Block: Twitter is like a coffee shop, where you can strike up a casual conversation. But not everyone there wants to know the finer details about you. Those that do, you bring to Facebook, where you can store things like photos that say more about who you are. For those who really want to learn about your organization, there's your website!

As the panel progressed, the discussion ranged from how organizational protocol fit into social media, how organizations address negative feedback, and more! All said, a great evening with lots of food for thought. Each panelist shared their innovative tips for reaching out and activating community participation. See more photos on Flickr! And stay tuned to LW!'s YouTube channel for the full video of the social media discussion.

A Penny, a Rabbit's Foot, Whatever Brings You Good Luck!

Preservation Heroes: Awards ceremony sings the praises of our "Unsung Heroes"

The world has many an unsung hero.

In 2011, the Upper West Side has eight more.

The Unsung Heroes of the Upper West Side

Awards Ceremony

Please join LANDMARK WEST! on Tuesday, June 7, 2011, from 6:00 to 8:00 PM, in the David Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center (61 West 62nd Street, the extraordinary public space recently transformed by star architects, and our special guests for the evening, Tod Williams and Billie Tsien) as we celebrate the people and projects that—in some way, shape or form—lead the way in preserving our neighborhood’s special character and sense of place.

Click here for information about reserving your tickets.

And the 2011 awardees are…

Exterior Preservation
American Youth Hostel, 891 Amsterdam Avenue, and
Cutsogeorge, Tooman & Allen Architects, a model partnership to restore a West Side architectural gem

Community Steward
Margarita Curet, Amsterdam Houses tenant leader and all-around "Force to Be Reckoned With"

Future Generations
Samantha Deutsch, 5th-grade teacher and partner in preservation education at P.S.145, West 105th St.

Preservation by Design
Milton Glaser, graphic designer of “I [heart] NY,” New York magazine, and LW! logo fame
   
Preservation Advocate
Roberta Brandes Gratz, former Landmarks Commissioner, award-winning journalist, urban critic, and author

Archival A-Team
Office for Metropolitan History: Christopher Gray & Suzanne Braley, curators and chroniclers of New York’s architectural history

To meet the honorees, visit the event website.

Artwork by Ron Barrett, illustrator of the world famous "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs".

PHOTOS :: 25th Anniversary celebration a magical success!

It was an indescribable sensation to stand among our friends Tuesday evening, in the Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse in the Rose Building at Lincoln Center.  In a room suspended among snowflakes, we gathered to celebrate a quarter century of an organization truly central to the preservation of our amazing Upper West Side neighborhood: LANDMARK WEST!   

Master of Ceremonies Tom Brokaw graciously presided over our evening's program-- a command performance, he mused: "Arlene commands; I perform!"  The revelries kicked-off with a special performance by Isaiah Sheffer, Founding Artistic Director of Symphony Space, and members of the Thalia Follies cabaret troupe entitled "The Preservation Follies".

But the night wasn't just about us!  LW! is going strong because of families like the Blechmans, the Caros, and the Wolfes.  Remarkable people whose passion fuels our own, who put their exceptional talents to work for the greater good, who help to organize the community around issues and values that matter most -- beauty, history, culture, and sustainability.  These families remind us why it is so important for LW! to persist for another 25 years ... and more!

For our friends who were able to join us for this magical night of revelry, may the photos below (and here, in our Flickr album!) serve as a reminder of our whimsical evening.  For those unable to attend, we hope to see you at another event in 2011.  Thank you, all, and here's to the next 25 years!