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Lunch with the Critics: Lincoln Center
Over on DO, Alexandra Lange and I launch our new feature, Lunch with the Critics, with a discussion of the doings at Lincoln Center. Here's me on the Johnsonian aspects, but do check it out in its entirety:
Though I was concerned because I so admired Philip Johnson's old fountain, the new one by WET is a dancing wonder. The same can't be said of what's been done to the interior of Johnson's David Koch Theater — formerly the New York State Theater, and don't get me started about this renaming — where several broad aisles have been driven through the orchestra, in a single stroke removing many of the best seats in the house while destroying its aesthetic unity. Those familiar with the old theater will remember its "Continental" seating; that is, each row was an unbroken arc of seats. If this was admittedly a bit of a pain, it was done quite consciously to create a sense of community in the audience, and it did that, brilliantly.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mark Lamster is a writer on the arts and culture. He is Associate American Editor of The Architectural Review, and is currently at work on his third book, a biography of the late architect Philip Johnson. Follow: @marklamster.More Bio >>
DESIGN OBSERVER JOBS
MORE BY Mark Lamster
05.30.13: The Family Store05.13.13: The Tower that Beer Built
04.23.13: The Bush Library
04.08.13: The Story of Seagram
04.01.13: How to Design an Iconic NY Fast Food Joint
03.19.13: Berlin: Then and Now
03.11.13: The Dallas Way
03.05.13: Inventing the Modern Library
02.20.13: Orange City
02.05.13: The Imaginary Worlds of Stephen Talasnik
More by Mark Lamster >>
BOOKS BY Mark Lamster
Spalding's World Tour: The Epic Adventure that Took Baseball Around the Globe - And Made It America's GamePublicAffairs, 2006
Master of Shadows: The Secret Diplomatic Career of the Painter Peter Paul Rubens Nan A. Talese, 2009
More books by contributors >>
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