DESIGN DISPATCH

Nina Chanel Abney and Jacolby Satterwhite to Land at Lincoln Center, and Other News

Our daily look at the world through the lens of design.

David Geffen Hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts

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Public art by Nina Chanel Abney and Jacolby Satterwhite will land at Lincoln Center.

“Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts announced today its collaboration with the Studio Museum in Harlem and Public Art Fund, all in New York, to commission new site-specific artworks by Nina Chanel Abney and Jacolby Satterwhite. The pieces are part of the inauguration of Lincoln Center’s new David Geffen Hall in October. Lincoln Center, a roughly 16-acre complex, is home to internationally renowned performing arts organizations including the New York Philharmonic (at David Geffen Hall), the Metropolitan Opera, the New York City Ballet, and the Juilliard School of Music. Lincoln Center, as we know it today, was developed as part of an urban renewal project led by Robert Moses in the 1950s.” —[H/T ARTnews]

After a three-year tenure, Tom Ford announces his departure as chairman of the CFDA.

“Tom Ford’s three-year tenure as chairman of the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) will end on May 31, the organization announced Monday. CFDA chief executive Steven Kolb will serve as interim chair until the organization names its next chairperson, with the announcement set to be made this fall. The new chairperson will take the reins at the start of the CFDA’s fiscal calendar in January 2023.” —[H/T Business of Fashion]

Waldorf Astoria Miami’s upcoming building designed by Sieger Suarez Architects and Carlos Ott

At 1,049 feet, Waldorf Astoria’s latest property is set to become Miami’s first supertall.

“Sieger Suarez Architects has collaborated with Uruguayan architect Carlos Ott to design a new property for hotel brand Waldorf Astoria in Miami, which aims to be the first supertall skyscraper to be completed in the city. The Waldorf Astoria Miami has 100 storeys and will top out at 1,049 feet (319.7 meters), well over the 300-meter threshold that defines a skyscraper as a supertall. If finished on schedule in 2026, it will be the first supertall skyscraper completed in Miami, according to the developer.” —[H/T Dezeen]

A London studio is prototyping Covid-19 rapid tests made of recyclable paper pulp.

“Each time you sit down to do a COVID-19 rapid test at home, you’re sending 10 grams of plastic to the landfill. Considering the Biden administration purchased 1 billion of these tests in January, that’s a mind-boggling 11,000 tons of plastic waste in the U.S alone. And it’s not even counting the tens of millions of other rapid tests purchased every week. One London studio has proposed a rapid test that is biodegradable and recyclable—right down to the packaging. Made of recyclable paper pulp, the test kit was wildly reinvented to be more user-friendly and accessible, too: no more verbose leaflets, painful nose swabs, and faint pink lines that can’t be deciphered by low-vision people. Dubbed Eco-Flo, the test kit is just a concept without a prototype for now, but manufacturers should take note. The number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. is growing again, and at-home testing is here to stay.” —[H/T Fast Company]

Rendering of the Treetop Trail at the Minnesota Zoo. Image courtesy Snow Kreilich Architects/Minnesota Zoo

The Minnesota Zoo is converting a defunct monorail into an elevated pedestrian path.

“In 2019, the Minnesota Zoo announced that the still-standing track would be converted into a 1.25-mile-long elevated pedestrian walkway as part of a years-in-the-works adaptive reuse scheme—a scheme that’s just now taking physical form following a groundbreaking ceremony held late last month. Slated for completion the summer of 2023, the repurposed monorail track, dubbed the Treetop Trail, is billed by the zoo as the world’s longest elevated pedestrian loop. Described by the Minnesota Zoo in a press release as the “ultimate reuse construction project,” the Treetop Trail is designed by Minneapolis-based Snow Kreilich Architects, working in collaboration with project engineer Buro Happold and construction partner PLC.” —[H/T The Architect’s Newspaper]

After a steady decline, the amount of graffiti on the New York City subway is rising.

“The number of subway graffiti artworks in New York City is climbing steadily after taking a significant dip in the last few years, according to reports by the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA). Since the beginning of 2022, the agency has reported 209 incidents of graffiti on subways in the city, set to beat a total of 300 in 2021. There were only 208 and 297 in 2020 and 2019, respectively. Current numbers are on track to reach 2018’s relative high of 443 incidents. Some local graffiti artists have attributed the spike to the work of tourists—not NYC residents. The New York Police Department said the same thing, telling the City that trains in layup areas are primarily tagged by ‘individuals living overseas.’” —[H/T Hyperallergic]

Watercolor by Hideaki Kita

Today’s attractive distractions:

Scientists may have found a fragment of the asteroid that killed off the dinosaurs.

In other science news, plants can now grow in lunar soil—though they don’t like it.

Genetic modification and proper storage may help prevent bananas from browning.

Hideaki Kita’s vivid watercolors illustrate the nostalgic beauty of Japanese suburbs

All Stories