The High Line

On Christmas day we went for a walk on Manhattan, through Greenwich Village, Soho and the Meatpacking district. I love the color and textures of these neighborhoods, the low (for New York!) brownstone buildings, the former industrial buildings turned art galleries, apartments and boutiques, and the not quite so touristy atmosphere. 

  

I was quite taken with this recent piece of architecture that blended so beautifully in amongst the brownstones. The street facade is clad in Corten steel, and I'm guessing it has a higher degree of transparency on the opposite facade.

Always when I travel, I have a list of what I want to see, both art and architecture, and drag my poor husband and kids around... This time in New York, I only had two things on my list: the occasional public sculpture and The High line. I had really high (excuse the pun, couldn’t resist) hopes for The High Line, and I was not disappointed. I’m a firm believer in new thinking around established phenomena, in this case the urban public park. To be elevated above street level and experience the city from another viewpoint had a greater impact on me than what I expected. It’s also an efficient use of valuable street level space and, most importantly, reusing excisting structures is both ecological and creates some unexpected spaces with valuable links to the past. I can highly recommend it, if you haven’t been there already.

The High Line is a public park built on an historic freight rail line elevated above the streets on Manhattan’s West Side. The first section of the High Line opened in 2009. It runs from Gansevoort Street in the Meatpacking District to West 20th Street. The second section, which runs between West 20th and West 30th Streets, opened two years later. 

The High Line is owned by the City of New York, and maintained and operated by Friends of the High Line. Founded in 1999 by community residents, Friends of the High Line fought for the High Line’s preservation and transformation at a time when the historic structure was under the threat of demolition. In addition to overseeing maintenance, operations, and public programming for the park, Friends of the High Line works to raise the essential private funds to support more than 90 percent of the park’s annual operating budget, and to advocate for the preservation and transformation of the High Line at the Rail Yards, the third and final section of the historic structure, which runs between West 30th and West 34th Streets.

The High Line was built in the 1930s, as part of a massive public-private infrastructure project called the West Side Improvement. It lifted freight traffic 30 feet in the air, removing dangerous trains from the streets of Manhattan's largest industrial district. No trains have run on the High Line for more than three decades. The last train chugged along the High Line in 1980, carrying three carloads of frozen turkeys.

The design team of landscape architects James Corner Field Operations, with architects Diller Scofidio + Renfro, created the High Line's public landscape. Construction on the park began in 2006. For a relatively narrow and straight stretch of parallel tracks, I was impressed with the great variety of spaces they've created. The High Line's planting design is inspired by the self-seeded landscape that grew on the out-of-use elevated rail tracks during the 25 years after trains stopped running. Many of the species that originally grew on the High Line's rail bed are incorporated into the park's landscape. It may sound funny, but I really liked the winter dullness of the plants, all brown and not much to look at. It really added to the intended effect of the natural elements taking over an old industrial installation.

 

In recent years, the High Line has been adding interesting art along its length and even on the billboards facing the linear park. Now, public art seems to be spreading outwards into neighboring Chelsea, a long-time gallery destination.

“The river that flows both ways”. This installation is part of High Line Art, a program that introduces site-specific works that respond to the park’s unique qualities.Inspired by the Hudson River, Spencer Finch’s The River That Flows Both Ways (between West 15th and West 16th Streets) documents a 700-minute (11 hours, 40 minutes) journey on the river in a single day. The title is a translation of Muhheakantuck, the Native American name for the Hudson, referring to the river’s natural flow in two directions. Like the rail line that existed on the High Line, the Hudson River was, and still is, an active route for the transportation of goods into Manhattan. The river and the High Line have always been linked in their geography, their function, and their imprints on the industrial legacy of the city. 

From a tugboat drifting on Manhattan’s west side and past the High Line, Finch photographed the river’s surface once every minute. The color of each pane of glass was based on a single pixel point in each photograph and arranged chronologically in the tunnel’s existing steel mullions. Time is translated into a grid, reading from left to right and top to bottom, capturing the varied reflective and translucent conditions of the water’s surface. The work, like the river, is experienced differently depending on the light levels and atmospheric conditions of the site. In this narrative orientation, the glass reveals Finch’s impossible quest for the color of water. I really loved how the artist used an existing structure (the old framework) to create something new. It reminded me a bit of the modern, pixelated new take on the stained glass window in the Cologne cathedral by one of my many favorites, Gerhard Richter. 

“Busted” is a series of contemporary busts amid the High Line’s public gardens. Artist Steven Claydon, created UNLIMITEDS & LIMITERS, which humorously plays with the idea of the traditional bust, with doubles in resin and concrete. 

Getty Station is a public art program based at the former Getty filling station conceived by real estate developer and art collector Michael Shvo to bring outdoor exhibitions to a broad audience in the center of the High Line arts district. The program centers on site specific installations as an opportunity to incorporate a classic twentieth century American icon into the contemporary art dialogue. I just missed Sheep Station (it ended in late fall) which showcased 25 of late artist François-Xavier Lalanne’s iconic epoxy stone and bronze ‘Moutons’. Lalanne’s first iteration of the sculptures was his infamous ‘Moutons de Laine’ in 1965, gradually expanding this particular body of work to include additional variations of the sculpture in epoxy stone and bronze in 1977. Set in a surrealist landscape amidst the existing industrial gas station architecture, the sheep symbolized Lalanne’s mission to demystify art. 

To me, even this New York phenomenon below could be an art installation, commenting the implications of urban density....But it's not! It's just an impressive parking structure:-)

Some "architect- nerdiness", a close up of a great material combo...

 

I really recommend this great video on YouTube, it gives you a  good overview and understanding of the High Line project and it's relation to the surrounding city. I also recommend this website for more info.

Pietrasanta and Carrara marble

After Cinque Terre, we drove south into Tuscany, where we stayed for a few days in the fin de siècle seaside resort of Viareggio. We stayed in a small hotel with only seven rooms, which constantly made me think of the pensione in E. M. Forsters "A room with s view", which was filmatized in 86 (directed by James Ivory). It's an extremely aesthetic movie taking place in Florence. If you haven't seen it, you must!

Viareggio has the Apuan mountains as a beautiful backdrop. This is where the famous Carrara marble is quarried. The highlight for me during our stay there was a daytrip to Pietrasanta. It's a wonderful city a 40 minute drive inland from Viareggio, and has been a Mecca for sculptors, with it's easy access to Carrara marble. It's situated at the foot of the Apuan mountains, very close to the quarries. Pietrasanta became important during the 15th century, mostly for its connection with the gorgeous stone. Michaelangelo himself, the greatest sculptor of all time, recognized the beauty of the Carrara white marble, not only did he use it for his own sculptures but he also worked in the quarries.

Today, there are sculpture workshops all over town. The town itself is an open air gallery, with lots of great sculptures scattered around the piazzas, and not only marble ones. The ones on the Piazza del Duomo, if I understood it right, are changed periodically. 

Il Pugliatore (the boxer) by Francesco Messina (Carrara bianco)

Alveoli by Rabarama, 2013 (Carrara bianco) Notice the hexagonal surface.

 

 

Pugno Autoritratto, Divition 111 by Bernard Bezzina, 2012 (bronze)

Fernando Botero's bronze sculpture in the background. The columbian artist is a resident of Pietrasanta.

The Piazza del Duomo

 

 

Ikaro caduto by Igor Mitoraj (bronze)

Pietrasanta is a jewelry box of beautiful medieval buildings, amongst others the Duomo di San Martino, built in the 14th century, with the brick bell tower from the same period, which has remained incomplete as it was intended to be clad in marble, like the duomo. Alas, the Duomo was closed when we were there, I would have loved to see the interior.

  

 

The raw material. The quarries are the white spots on the mountain sides, it's not snow!

The area containing the Carrara quarries is the worlds oldest industrial site still in operation, marble has been quarried continuously since roman times. Isn't that fascinating? Today, the around 300 marble quarries extract marble that is shipped to all corners of the world. But do you think I found the Carrara chopping board I've been lusting for? Oh no! There wasn't a single marble souvenir to be seen. A bit strange, don't you think?

I have a thing for indiustrial sites, places where the landscape has been shaped by man and processes. The phenomenon has a very obvious duality, maybe that's part of the fascination? I would have loved to visit the marble quarries, but they are not open to the public. I found some pretty amazing images by Edward Burtynsky, though, one of my favorite photographers, who shares my fascination. The images are from his web site. His work is very interesting. We did see, however, lots of sites along the autostrada with huge blocks of marble ready to be shipped across the globe (my pictures above, Burtynsky's below. I guess that goes without saying...).

 

La Dolce Vita

Hi, I'm back from a lovely vacation in Bella Italia. Every time I visit I feel like I've only scratched the surface of the great amount of cultural treasures to see, there's so much beauty to behold!

We travelled further than we originally planned, distances are dwarfed by the speed of the autostrade (that, and a furious Alfa Romeo:-) The only fixed plan we had before we left was visiting Cinque Terre national park, which we have long been wanting to see. What was supposed to be a drive a little bit further down the ligurian coast, ended up including both Tuscany, Lombardy and Emilia Romagna.

It's a lovely region of Italy. Rome, Siena and Florence are just short drives away. However we decided to stay out of the big cities, and enjoy the coast and smaller towns, except for our point of departure- Milan and a couple of hours in Pisa (the kids really wanted to see the reclining tower). My husband and I have been to Rome and Florence and would love to take the kids, but it's too hot and crowded in the summer. Their motivation to see heaps of old stuff only go so far... The youngest one, the little thrifter, proved a stayer, though, and followed his mom around with his camera:-)

We flew to Milan and drove down to the Golfo di Lerici, where Shelley and Lord Byron both stayed for a period of their lives, which consequently nicknamed it Golfo dei Poeti (of course, our hotel was named The Byron...) The gulf is just south of The Cinque Terre. The national park does have a few hotels and rooms for rent, but the villages are very secluded. The kids preferred staying where there was a little more going on.

After Cinque Terre, we continued south to Viareggio, Pietrasanta and Lucca, we then took the ferry out to the island of Elba for some lovely, relaxing days in beautiful scenery. Back to mainland Italy again, we had a brief visit to Pisa before heading north to Milan again. I took around a zillion pictures, and thought I'd give you some of the highlights, starting off with Cinque Terre:-)

The five secluded fishing villages that make up Cinque Terre national park are (from south going north) Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso. They have churches and structures from the middle ages, but signs of settlements from as early as roman times have been found. Until modern age, they were only accessible from the sea. 

Cinque Terre was added to Unesco's world heritage list in 1997, due to the spectacular and inaccessible landscape and the way it's inhabitants has managed to adapt to it, by terrassing the landscape for cultivation (vineyards and olivetrees) and building compact villages that cling to the cliffs where the harsh landscape permitted. The houses are high, narrow tower-houses, which worked like small fortresses and protected the inhabitants and their belongings from pirates. The villages are accessible by train or by boat (our choice), not by car. Arriving by sea was truly spectacular and gives you the most beautiful first views of the villages. The boat service is frequent, and you can get a full day ticket with unlimited rides.

The area was known already in roman times for the great wines. Cinque Terre vineyards are planted on perilously steep slopes, close enough to the sea that the spray from the breaking waves forms a fine mist over the vines. No wonder it's good. The awkward, inaccessible topography means that most vineyard management must be done manually, without the aid of heavy machinery.

Coming from the south, Riomaggiore is the first village you encounter, and perhaps the most spectacular one. Founded in the 8th century, it develops vertically along the Rio Maior stream, which gave the name to the village. The stream has later been covered (as you can see in the two last pictures) and is now crisscrossed by steep stairs, running among the typically pink and yellow coloured ligurian houses. The narrow main road extends down to the ocean where the fishermen have built a ramp to pull up the boats when the weather is bad. The church of San Giovanni Battista was built in 1340, while the castle date back to 1260.

Going north, Manarola is the next port of call. It's the second largest of the villages. It starts up on a cliff and stretches down to sea level. There's a "Lover's lane" connecting it to the neighbouring village Riomaggiore, it's a 20 minute hike. Manarola is developed along the Groppo stream. The stream has however been covered (like in Riomaggiore) and is now the meeting point of the many narrow streets and the centre of the village's life.

The gothic Church of San Lorenzo, founded in 1338, is on the top of the village, next to the Disciplinati oratory and bell tower on the Piazza Capellini. The marina has a natural dock, and thanks to its clear waters and steep rocks, is the perfect place for a snorkelling tour.

 

Corniglia is next. It is not directly by the sea, but lays on top of a 100 m high cliff surrounded by terraces of vineyards, citrus- and olivetrees, and the church of San Pietro (1334). The village dates back to Roman times, and has developed along the main road, which leads to a wonderful terrace with views to the other four villages. Corniglia is actually mentioned in Boccaccio's Dekamerone (that I have sitting on a shelf, unread, I'm afraid... I have to see if I can find that reference).

The Sanctuary of Nostra Signora delle Grazie in San Bernardino can be reached with a one hour walk. Not even tons of gelato could convince the boys that such an excursion was a good idea... At the sea level, Corniglia has a long rocky beach on one side and a small dock on the other.

We decided to have lunch in Monterosso, the most northern of the five villages. It's slightly larger and easier accessible as the rest of the five, but the shoreline is less dramatic and spectacular. We arrived just in time to have a stroll through the market before they wrapped it up, which consisted of delicious fruits and veg, as well as clothing and colorful ceramics in the shape of every kind of seashell and fish imagineable.

 Lunch... Local catch, local wine...truly delicious

The lunch craving got to us hurrying north, so we decided to save Vernazza for dessert. We passed it going north and saw that it was very beautiful and not to be rushed through on an empty stomach:-) We were right about the beauty part, and spent some time there before continuing south. We had our gelato while watching the local kids doing crazy dives from the surrounding cliffs. I was so scared they'd get thrown into the rocks by the force of the waves, but they must have spent their entire childhood practicing.

Vernazza has a natural harbour with the shape of an amphitheatre and was founded around 1000. Vernazza became an important centre during the Maritime Republic of Genoa, thanks to the ability of its shipbuilders.   The Doria tower, the defence tower built by the Genoese, overlooks the village from a rocky hill. The church of Santa Margherita d'Antiochia, built in 1318, is on the village's main square and is characterised by its octagonal belltower. Like the other churches of Cinque Terre, it's in the typical ligurian gothic style. Loggias, colonnades, portals and other refined architectonic elements, witness that the economic and social development of Vernazza has been higher than that of the other four villages of Cinque Terre.

  

 

Heading back from Cinque Terre, we jumped off the boat to spend some the late afternoon in Portovenere, the first port to the south of the national park, right across the bay from where we stayed. the village is beautiful, with a dense "wall" of brightly colored houses as a backdrop to the harbour, which is guarded by the church up on the cliff, San Pietro (13th century). There were so many lovely boats, and it was very much the place you would expect to meet Brigitte Bardot or Sophia Loren by the table next to you, sipping a glass of the local wine.

I'll leave you with some pics from the reception at The Byron. I quite liked the dark wood with the white furniture and lamps, and the wall decoration was smashing (as well as the complementing trash can:-)

Stay tuned, more pics of bella Italia coming soon:-)