The architecture firm of Carrère and Hastings designed the Beaux Arts main branch of the New York Public Library, which opened in 1911 at 42nd St. and 5th Ave. in Midtown Manhattan. The building was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1965.
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Maps with hand-lettering? Yes, please! I love these cartographic illustrations by London-based Linzie Hunter. The letterforms are great, and the cheery color choices put a smile on my face.
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Red Stripe Red Light by Margaret Rankin
Margaret Rankin is an artist and landscape architect living in Toronto, who sells her prints on Etsy under the name Magprint. These block prints are from a series based on photographs by Toronto-based photographer Graham Iddon. I love the rich colors and bold geometry of these overpasses — they may be ugly in real life, but they’re beautiful in print form.
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Enjoy Your Weekend: St. Patty’s Day edition.
OTR, West End a Quagmire for Census: the US Census plots obtaining a semi-accurate picture of Tract 16 in Cincinnati, one of the most difficult tracts to count in the country.
Embshoff Woods – Off Trail: CityKin and son go on a hike through Embshoff Woods in Cincinnati.
Things That Go Bump On Harbord Street: in Toronto, street art warns bicyclists of precarious road conditions.
Racism Is Not Crafty: One Grand Home responds to Knitta, Please?, the phenomenon of “tagging” utility poles and other urban sites with knits.
56 Leonard St. Building Model (Herzog & de Meuron): buy your model of this never-built Herzog & de Meuron building on eBay; via Curbed.
The World as Their Canvas: Steven Heller gets down with some cartography books.
Timberland by Luke Painter
Luke Painter is a Toronto-based artist who works in drawing, installation and animation. A selection of his India ink drawings is shown here, but make sure to also check out his amazing animations.
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How much would you have wanted this as a kid? When I was little, I built roads out of rows of colored pencils and, when our need for speed increased, my cousins and I pooled together our Lego to build hills for our Lego roads, so that we could race properly. This tape would have been perfect for us! It’s available at a cutesy little shop in Toronto named Up to You.
Enjoy Your Weekend: lots going on this weekend, from the West End to Covington and beyond!
Skateboarders Still Working towards Building Newport Skatepark: “Galaxie Skateshop and many of the city’s skateboarders have been working to build a permanent skatepark under the bridge by Newport High School.”
Don’t Throw it, Grow it!: Etsy gives our Midwest seed bombs some VL love [although, in the case of a seed bomb, throwing it goes hand in hand with growing it].
Why Richard Florida’s Honeymoon Is Over: the love seems to be waning between Richard Florida and his adopted hometown of Toronto.
Craigslist Lies People Tell: East of Williamsburg and Near L Train: “many things are east of Williamsburg proper, such as the rest of Brooklyn, Long Island, Marseilles and the Kremlin.”
There’s No Place Like Dome: a “best of” tour of the world’s geodesic domes.
Atlas Obscura: “a compendium of the world’s wonders, curiosities and esoterica” [including the "country" of North Dumpling Island!].
Citizens’ Art to Be Displayed at Cincinnati City Hall?: actually, the answer to that question seems to be “probably not anytime soon,” though it’s a great idea that’s worth pursuing.
The Death of Astroland: Iconic Rocket Could Be Sold for Scrap: holy fucking shit, people, don’t do this…
Housepaint: at the Institute for Contemporary Culture in Toronto, “Drawing attention to issues of poverty and homelessness, this ground-breaking exhibition is a collaboration between ten street artists in memory of the former residents of Tent City.”
Still an Eye-Popper After All These Years: Manhattan’s glorious Beaux Arts De Lamar Mansion, designed by C. P. H. Gilbert and built in 1902, now houses the Polish Consulate.
Town of the Rings – New Self-Sustainable Town in Korea: “Surrounded by a picturesque lake and forested hills, Korea is set to create a sustainable township which will be a self sufficient city of 77,000 inhabitants, to be located about 22 miles (35 kilometers) south of Seoul, South Korea.”
Michelle Kaufmann Designs McMansion Gingerbread: prefab gingerbread goodness from the twisted mind of a crafty architect.
‘Tis The Season: Cat Frost: New York Shitty spots the cutest holiday decoration ever in Greenpoint.
Monopoly has a simple, effective formula that works with varied themes [apparently even the Junior Disney Princess Edition]. I’ve just learned that, earlier this year, people voted for cities to be included in the new Monopoly Here and Now: The World Edition. 20 top cities were chosen out of the pool of 70, with 2 more earning spots on the board as a result of write-in votes.
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Charley Harper at Cincinnati’s Fab Frames: my Apartment Therapy post on the work of our hometown hero.
Mason’s Art-Filled Loft: my Apartment Therapy tour of the home of Mason Paul, owner of Synthetica Gallery in Brighton.
Unofficial Cincy Design Guide: Drew of designcincinnati wrote a concise guide to some of Cincinnati’s design-focused offerings.
Guerrilla Gardener Movement Takes Root in L.A. Area: part beautification, part eco-activism, part DIY planning in Los Angeles.
Illegal Signs for Illegal Signs: in Toronto, a grassroots protest against illegal signage; I think “fight fire with fire” is an apt description.
Japanese Woman Caught Living in Man’s Closet: she slept on a mattress in the closet, took showers, and was discovered only after the man noticed that his food was disappearing.
A New Emerald Is Fashioned for Boston’s Necklace: a mixed-income community of over 500 units is being developed on the site of an old mental hospital.
