Archtober Offers Insights On the Art We Live In
If Goethe was right that “music is liquid architecture and architecture is frozen music,” Lower Manhattan residents will have the opportunity to quaff deep draughts during Archtober, New York’s annual month-long celebration of urban design across the five boroughs. Organized by the Center for Architecture, the festival is now in its 14th year. For the 2024 iteration, multiple events are slated for Lower Manhattan, including retrospectives of local history and tours of recently created spaces. Advance registration is required for all events.
Shaping the Skyline in Lower Manhattan
Architect Abby Suckle and William Singer, the City’s Chief Plan Examiner, will lead a walking tour that recalls how the spires of Downtown gave New York its historic identity. $25. Friday, October 4; 3pm to 4:30pm; meet at Trinity Church.
Remnants of New Amsterdam Tour
See the remains of Manhattan’s first City Hall, discover the original Dutch fort, wind mill and battery, and trace the streets of 1667 with Manhattan’s first map in hand. $29+. Saturday, October 5; 2pm to 4pm; meet at One Bowling Green.
Wagner Park Pavilion & Battery Park City Resiliency Project
This tour of the construction site at Wagner Park, which is being rebuilt to withstand rising sea levels and extreme-weather events, will examine how infrastructure and urban design converge to address priorities both practical and aesthetic. $10. Tuesday, October 8; 2:30pm to 4pm; at Wagner Park.
Pier 26 Science Playground
Architects from the Olin firm will reflect on the creative process that combined recreation and education in a pair of custom-fabricated giant play structures shaped like two endangered sturgeon species that are native to the Hudson River — the Atlantic sturgeon and shortnose sturgeon. $10. Wednesday, October 9; 1pm to 2:15 pm; at the Science Playground, Pier 26.
Architects’ Tour of Little Island
Landscape architect Signe Nielsen and architect Fabian Jabro, will recall their collaboration on Little Island, the two acres of gardens, glades, lawns, performance spaces, and picnic grounds newly ensconced in the Hudson River, and hoisted above the water by 132 flower-shaped masonry “tulips” — pods that appear to be separate platforms from outside Little Island but form a continuous, undulating surface when seen from the inside. Friday, October 11; 2pm to 3pm and 3:30pm to 4:30pm; at Little Island, Pier 55 (West Street and West 13th Street).
Gansevoort Peninsula
Closed to the public for decades, the newly reimagined Gansevoort Peninsula opened one year ago with 5.5 acres of waterfront open space, including a sand beach, lawns, a picnic area, sports fields, and the monumental work of art “Days End.” This tour, hosted by the Center for Architecture, will focus on how a collaborative planning process that invited public input resulted in this magnificent public space. $10. Sunday, October 13; noon to 2pm; at Gansevoort Peninsula (West Street and Little West 12th Street).
Pier 17
Designers from SHoP Architects will discuss the process that transformed a closed shopping mall into 300,000 square feet of restaurants and an outdoor performance space. $10. Wednesday, October 30; noon to 1:15pm; Pier 17.