Philadelphia: Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter & Paul

Philadelphia No Responses »
Mar 152013
Philadelphia Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul

The crossing dome of the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul

Looking straight up at the crossing dome of the Cathedral.

The Cathedral is one of the most eminent structures in Philadelphia. Its construction took from 1846 until 1864. Designed in the style of Italian Renaissance, its interior is richly decorated.

The architect was Napoleon LeBrun, a man whose career spanned the entire 2nd half of the Nineteenth Century and included such famous buildings as the Metropolitan Life Tower in Manhattan.

This is one of the many great photo opportunities available on my Philly Photo Safari. Plenty of room is still available for my next one on April 21, 2013 at 1pm. See my photo tours page for more details.

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2 Park Avenue

New York City No Responses »
Jan 102013
Ely Jaques Kahn's landmark 2 Park Avenue Empire State in background

The warm brick and terra-cotta of 2 Park Avenue contrast with the metallic mooring mast and antenna of the Empire State Building, a few blocks to the west.

The colorful and striking 2 Park Avenue Building, built in 1926-28 on lower Park Avenue, was designed by one of New York’s foremost architects of the first half of the twentieth century, Ely Jacques Kahn.  Constructed when this section of the avenue was just beginning to be developed with modern office towers, 2 Park Avenue represents one of Kahn’s finest essays into Art Deco or Modernistic style architecture.

In the 2 Park Avenue Building, Kahn was able to successfully integrate a new decorative type produced by the application of colorful terra-cotta panels in geometric designs to a tall, commercially successful office/loft structure. 2 Park Avenue was one of the important late 1920s buildings that helped create the visually lively and iconic city of the early 20th century.

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Lower Manhattan: The Helen McAllister

New York City No Responses »
Aug 312012
Tugboat Helen McAllister at South Street Seaport Manhattan NYC

The Helen McAllister, berthed at the South Street Seaport Museum in lower Manhattan

The South Street Seaport Museum in lower Manhattan is one of several geographically-distributed museums designated by Congress that make up the National Maritime Museum. My favorite boat at South Street is the Helen McAllister, a hard-working, steam-powered tug built in 1900 that was still in service in the 1990′s.

A residual memory of this book is probably why I’m drawn to little old tugboats.

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Eastern Market Metro Elevator

Extra Ordinary No Responses »
Aug 282012

Eastern Market Metro Escalator Washington DC

Ascending...

I was heading to a photo Meetup at Marine Barracks in DC a few Saturdays ago. It was already a beautiful day at 7:45 am, and as I ascended from the Metro station, I noticed the interplay of the lines of the roof and the escalator, topped off by the truly blue sky and nice puffy white clouds.

Since the main compositional elements are lines and shapes, I thought this one would make a nice B&W image.

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Trefoil Arch Passage

New York City No Responses »
Aug 232012
Trefoil Arch Central Park Manhattan NYC

Shadow and light through Trefoil Arch in Central Park

There are 35 bridges and arches in Central Park – each one unique. Trefoil arch is, in a way, the most unique, as it’s the only one where each entrance to the passageway is shaped differently. The west-side arch is a round Roman one, while the east-side opening is the trefoil (three-lobed) one you see here.

Trefoil Arch was designed by Calvert Vaux and Jacob Wrey Mould, and constructed in 1862. It serves one of several paths that connect Bethesda Terrace to Conservatory Waters.
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W. 57th Street: Big Red 9

New York City No Responses »
May 242012
W. 57th Street: Big Red 9 in front of Gordon Bunshaft's 9 W 57th Street (Solow Building)

Then Big Red 9

Here’s a wider view of 9 W 57th Street. There’s no mistaking the address here!

Again, notice the Chickering Building reflected fun-house-mirror style in the parabolic facade of 9 West.

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Philadelphia: Market Street National Bank

Philadelphia No Responses »
May 212012
Facade detail of former Market Street National Bank 1 East Penn Square Philadelphia PA

Facade detail of former Market Street National Bank at 1 East Penn Square

1 Penn Square East is a decent enough Art Deco structure, but the building’s most appealing feature is its polychrome terra-cotta decoration.

This is just a section of the Mesoamerican-inspired design over the main portal on Market Street. The architects, Ritter & Shay, also applied the same theme to each setback and along the edges of the crown.

Thanks to Residence Inns, the builing is in excellent shape, looking almost as good as it did upon completion in 1930.

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South Philly Floral Arrangement

Philadelphia No Responses »
May 212012
Wrought-iron basement window at Tasker and South Carlisle Streets in Philadelphia

Street-level design flair in South Philly

When I saw this pattern, it immediately reminded me of a gritier, more urban version of this one

Both images have two design elements that I really like: a repeating pattern and the contrast of color with “not-color.” This new one also has another of my favorite design elements in the radial lines at the top of the grillwork.

For the record, this photo shows the basement window of a house at the corner of Tasker and South Carlisle streets in funky, cheese-steaky, home-of-Rocky-Balboa South Philly.

 

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E. 42nd Street: Socony Reflections

New York City No Responses »
May 092012

Socony-Mobil Building Reflected in the Hyatt Hotel

If this image looks very much like the one I took of 666 Fifth Avenue, there’s good reason. Both are buildings with patterned metal skin, and in both photos, the buildings are reflected in a nearby glass-curtain-wall skyscraper.

666 Fifth’s wall panels are made from aluminum, while Socony, uniquely, is sheathed in stainless steel, but the reflections are very similar.

In my previous post, I rather cavalierly dismissed “…those glass-and-steel boxes…,”  but after my 2-semester course in history of Western architecture, I’ve come to understand that not all International Style buildings are ugly and boring. So now, I’m going to have to look at them… and photograph them… with new eyes.

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Civic Center: Municipal Building South Arcade

New York City No Responses »
May 092012
Gustavino tile lines the arched ceiling of the south arcade of the Municipal Building in Manhattan

Gustavino tile lines the arched ceiling of the south arcade of the Municipal Building in Manhattan

Subway commuters ascending to street level from the IRT Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall stop are treated to this elegant vaulted arcade, lined with Gustavino tile.

 

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