Sunday, July 27, 2008

Times Square, Eighth Avenue between 50th and 49th Streets


Mary Sargent © 2008 …………………………………….. click to enlarge


As I was saying, Friday night I was meeting Carolyn and Ilana at Chez Napoleon to celebrate Ilana's birthday, and I planned to get in a good photowalk beforehand. As so often happens, it was considerably shorter than planned; this time, due to a chat with a man with a camera. So, now, being rushed, I have only a couple of shots on Eighth Avenue and the block of 48th Street from 8th to 9th. I just hope I live a long, long life.

This is the entrance to One World Wide Plaza, part of a complex completed in 1989 that covers the entire block from 49th to 50th and Eighth to Ninth Avenues, and includes a large nice plaza. This entrance is the least successful part of the whole project in my opinion. How gloomy, how depressing to enter your office through this ponderous dark corridor. That is the doorway to Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP, one of their most important tenants. Paul Goldberger wrote an interesting assessment of the project in 1990.


See map.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Mary:
Did you wear your flowered silk skirt and maroon tank top for your night out on the town with C & I at Chez Napoleon? I read your blog every day and enjoyed hearing about your 'quest'.

Nan in Santa Barbara

Anonymous said...

Hi, Nan,

Yes, as a matter of fact I did. No one seemed all that impressed, however. But wait! now that I think of it, man with a camera took my picture. It must have been the great color.

Thanks for asking!

Anonymous said...

I'm so sorry I didn't notice what you were wearing. Must have been that kir martini.
Anyway, when I first discovered that 'plaza'on 50th, I was enthrawled--such a huge place with tables and chairs and lots and lots of room--I was all ready to add it to my Places to Smoke in New York booklet, when I saw these big no smoking signs all over it.
Oh well, too advanced for my taste anyway. It was green before there was green.