I know I promised to blog architecture next but...

I feel I should mention the amazing goings on at 11 Spring Street in the Nolita area of Manhattan. The building, long a repository, if not a magnet, for street art will be converted into condos. So, you think, yet another story of gentrification erasing out illegal expression (or alternately another victory of generic neighborhood cleanup depending on your viewpoint)...



Well, that's where the situation becomes interesting. The developers of the property, a massive and long-abandoned horse stables turned icehouse, have joined forces with the Wooster Collective to have internationally famous street artists decorate the facade, culminating in a huge party in December



ABOVE
londonpolice
and
Michael DeFeo

have so far contributed works and one can only imagine who will drop by next. As the Wooster Collective website
notes:

"Watch this space - literally.

If you're an artist who we've featured on the Wooster website in the last 5 years and you're coming through Manhattan in the next six week, drop us a note.

And if you're in New York, don't make any plans for the second week in December ;)"

As "D" summarizes in his comments at Gothamist:

"There's a big vacant building on which people started to put up unauthorized art (or whatever), the owners responded by saying, "hey, let's get an artists' collective to curate the way the building is decorated so it has some cohesiveness and flow (and so that some established artists are inspired to contribute), the artists agree to abide by a deadline, it's all free (!!), there's gonna be a big party at the end, and everyone gets along?? No divisiveness? No bitterness? No unreasonable squattters [sic] demanding to stay rent free or artists demanding that the art be preserved forever? No black-hearted landlords crushing the art with wrecking balls?
No government intervention or regulation?

this is too good to be true."

I believe the art will be removed during the renovation next year, but given the temporal nature of the form I believe this offers a wonderful paradigm for cities with numerous abandoned buildings and buildings stuck "in progress." Here in St. Louis Chivvis Development did something similar (albeit with artists of much less renown) on several buildings it owns at Chouteaus Landing on S. Fourth. I think such "legal walls" offer an opportunity to enhance the visual density of the city, celebrate diversity, and at least partially redeem the gaps (or more specifically dents I suppose) left in the urban fabric by abandonments.

Here's to hoping we see much more of this phenomena both locally and nationally!

It's Morning Again in America

Although the recounts, court challenges, and other struggles are still far from over somehow I feel this cartoon by Berkelely Breathed from over a year ago is quite apt.



However, the battle is still far from over; Robert M. Gates who will replace Donald Rumsfeld as Secretary of Defense has a bit of history in the particular region we find ourselves currently embroiled in. Obviously I am aware that the world was a different place in the early 1980's, but the person to replace our heroically incompetent S.O.D. (nice acronym!) should be cut of different cloth rather than another official who is privy to programs of dubious legality, the flouting of international law, and assistance to our professed enemies no?

Well enough of that tack...

While I personally am far to cynical to ascribe the events of November 8th as a sea change, I do feel that, ‘throwing out the bums’, the American people have collectively repudiated the Rovian doctrine of rightist extremism and divisive discourse. Of course, the sheer number of convicted felons, gay pederasts, and suspected launderers in the halls of government surely only forced the issue. As it was pointed out on CNN last night, when one has to begin one's reelection campaign with an ad stating that "While I did regrettably cheat on my wife I never choked my mistress" surely it is an uphill battle at best. But, as so many have pointed out, the old axiom "Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely" may well become the epithet awarded this period by generations of American History teachers to come.

However, I do not agree that the principle business of the newly minted legislators should be to immediately pursue impeachment against President Bush. While this stance might seem incongruous with my general attitudes towards government, despite his utter ineptitude President Bush has been wise enough to never spread his blend of lies and spin under oath. In fact, I may be wrong (please let me know if I am) but Bush has only been under oath twice: at both inaugurations. Without immediate perjury it could take a decade to unravel the layers of illegalities and deceit that have entrapped and perverted our country (but not in a Mark Foley way... sorry, couldn't resist!) and pursuing such a process would bring the nation to a standstill.

I am not advocating ignoring the probable crimes committed by this administration (felonious wiretapping for one) but I am advocating the beginning of a concerted effort to reverse the disastrous policies of this grim half decade, and a stringent rejection of any further policies. It is my hope that such a dramatic reversal of political course may not be an isolated event, but may be the beginning of a new progressive era in which issues of fiscal responsibility, social inequality, universal healthcare, and the just distribution of the bounty of our wonderful country may finally be addressed in an inclusive and comprehensive way.

If this is going to happen it is clear that the burden is squarely on our shoulders; we the people must advocate for such causes, intimidate our representatives by strenuously voting our social consciences. We must legislate big money out of the equation, accept responsibility for continuous governmental oversight, familiarize ourselves with the minutiae of major issues, openly debate issues in a congenial matter, and above all remember that, as shown for the third time, our vote is not only our ultimate responsibility as citizens and can singularly change the course of the nation

Now... I suppose I should write on some architecture soon...

Even In satire Gehry generates firestorm

So on Thursday the local alternative weekly rag broke a seemingly incredible story; with funding from Emily Pulitzer (she who has employed Tadao Ando) the Cardinals management was to redevelop the site of the old Edward Durrel Stone designed Busch Stadium with a village of Gehry designed shards complete with another damn fish. Particularly chortle-inducing is Gehry's view on baseball

All in all, not an obvious choice to conceive a baseball-centric development. And in point of fact, Gehry couldn't care less about the sport. In one spirited e-mail joust with DeWitt, the architect freely admits he's not enamored of the American Pastime. "Not even close," he writes. "It's such a silly sport, don't you think? I appreciate its linear nature and lack of time constraints. But I much prefer watching ice hockey."

Gehry and DeWitt do, however, agree on one thing: It's about the fans.

"Watch how the little red people exit the stadium and wend their way around the site," Gehry urges DeWitt — "the site" being the fenced-in crater he has been retained to fill. "That's more interesting to me than any game. I see The Village as an extension of these patterns, a more refined version, where baseball fans can find sustenance in a more sophisticated atmosphere.

"Baseball is fine for the so-called boys of summer," Gehry's e-mail concludes, "but what St. Louis needs is something for the men — and women — of fall, winter and spring."

Plausible? Sadly yes, at least until you throw in the addition of the International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame, (which does call St. Louis home) the Stanley Elkin Archives and the moving of the Kiel Opera House building one-half mile east. The story which is extremely well crafted (down to the engineer enthused about moving the Kiehl and the first play that will be performed by the repertory company in their new facility) certainly revives this cynical blogger's belief in the existence of satire à la Swift. The interesting (and possibly predictable) phenomenon has been the response to said article. The Riverfront Times was quickly forced to begin the web version of the story with this rather droll note:

"The sharp stick of satire titled "A Whole New Ballgame" appears to have poked more than the sensitive underbelly of St. Louis' collective cultural inferiority complex. An attorney who represents one of the famous people whose name the story features prominently called today to inform us that as far as it concerns their client, the piece is "entirely false" and has "no basis in truth whatsoever."

Whaddaya know? The principals of a company known and admired the world over (and their general counsel!) are reading li'l ol' Riverfront Times!

They did have a smidgen of constructive criticism to offer. In legal circles, the term is retraction.

The story below is a work of satire... The entrée that emerged lampoons the posturing of Cardinals ownership and city muckamucks around Ballpark Village (a.k.a. The Crater Formerly Known As Busch Stadium). It was inspired by a kernel of truth: namely, that last month the Cardinals reminded the city that the ballclub had only agreed to commit $60 million to redevelop the now-vacant site, and that it takes a few hundred million more to build a Village. From there we pretty much made it up, from Pulitzer's machinations to Gehry's illustrations to Shannon's protestations.

We trust you get the idea.

Given this quick and litigious response, one might have to take the position that, in the eyes of publicists at least, FOG isn't quite the wunderkind he once was. I can't help but to think that if this prank was pulled a decade ago, despite the complete lack of authenticity to the story, the parties involved might not have been so quick to debunk the story but rather would have basked in the spurious glow of the Bilbao effect (much like Cheney and WMDs) before softly putting the myth to rest. I believe the ferocity with which the Pulitzer team debunked this merriment shows that the endless parade of formulaic recyclings of metal chunks and tortured structures and a few neighborhood killing monster developments has taken the shine off the king of bling. Of course, with every city stunting to grab a piece of the tourist trade, and every small town pol buying Richard Florida's tripe hook line and sinker, museums to obscure persons and art institutes without permanent collections by starchitects proliferate throughout the first world and the danger of endless self-replication becomes paramount. Are you listening Danny?

But I still like the IAC building screw ups and all...