Today's New York City is an old city colliding in some disgusting--yet enlightening--ways, wherein then New York is torn down to make way for the current one.
In fact, the Folk Art Building at 45 West 53rd Street will be razed for a newer version, as preserving the building became increasingly difficult. Luckily, the iconic 63-paneled, 82-foot-high façade of the skyscraper will be taken over by the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and put into storage.
Frank Lloyd Wright would more than likely deem this a travesty, as per his theories on dispersal from the "Broadacre City" plan.
Funny, too, because Wright would probably say that if one were to construct--or merely conceptualize--a skyscraper, it would have to be pushed to the limit in terms of height and quality.
Sure, he championed minimalist ideals relating to humanity and the natural landscape...but this is New York City!
Regarding his design of the "mile-high" tower (later coined "The Illinois") for Chicago, his take on very tall buildings was simple, consisting of one column protruding high into the clouds with rooms extending out from a central core--"like branches on a tree trunk."
From February 1 to June 1 Frank Lloyd Wright's installations, conceptions and even "Broadacre City" will be on display as part of the Frank Lloyd Wright and the City: Density vs. Dispersal exhibition at MoMA.
The series is organized by Barry Bergdoll, the museum's Acting Chief Curator of Architecture and Design, and Carole Ann Fabian, Director of the Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library at Columbia University.
And it might just be the best exhibit yet here in early 2014.
"Broadacre City" (1934-35) was Wright's "most systematic program for city planning and, along with Le Corbusier's contemporary Radiant City, is often cited as a text-book example of bad, unsustainable city planning."
Vecause he thought the idea was so wonderful, he scaled the grassy metropolis from paper to a 12x12-foot model of the city and toured it throughout the 1930s.
Lucky for us, this glorified woodcarving is on display at MoMA, as well.
This, along with many other FLW sketches (some videos, too) is open until June 1.
A real "arse-whole," here's another side of Wright as a special guest on "What's My Line."
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