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Architecture

Brooklyn Heights

MODULE R Founder Donald Rattner Talks Modern Design

December 18, 2012

Donald Rattner, founder of MODULE R—which opened a year ago at 141 Atlantic Avenue—is profiled in the latest issue of Brooklyn’s The L Magazine. Writer Kristin Iversen offers, “How can we exert some control over our spaces in the absence of oneiric home renovation? Enter MODULE R, a high-concept, modern design store.”

The upscale boutique, dedicated to “modular, reconfigurable and customizable design,” was launched by architect Rattner, who was inspired to open the store after he was commissioned to design 30 identical modular prefabricated hotel cottages for an historic spa resort in West Virginia. He says, “This got me interested not only in modularity, but in any kind of creative product or system that accommodates reconfigurability, co-creativity and flexible design. When I discovered that no one in the design, retail or gallery sectors had thought to specialize in this body of work, I figured it was my duty to rectify the situation.”

L says that Rattner, who our Heather Quinlan profiled in 2010, feels the store benefits from “the architects, graphic designers and members of the creative class” who live in the area.


Source: Brooklyn Heights Blog
http://brooklynheightsblog.com/archives/52927

From the Web

Arts and Entertainment, Brooklyn Heights, DUMBO, Food, History

Nice Weather This Weekend; Anything to Do?

November 9, 2012

The weather forecast is encouraging, but with so many institutions, like Bargemisic, which is in good physical shape but still lacks Con Ed power, coping with the aftermath of the Sandy/nor’easter one-two punch, what is there to do if you’re in town? There’s the penultimate Smorgasburg of the season this Sunday, November 11 from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Tobacco Warehouse, Water Street at New Dock Street in the Fulton Ferry Historic District (I once described it as being in DUMBO and caught holy heck from the Fulton Ferry Landing Association). The final Smorgasburg of the season will be the following Sunday, November 18.

Brooklyn Heights Cinema, 70 Henry Street (corner of Orange) will be showing The Sessions and A Late Quartet. Showtimes are here.

The Brooklyn Historical Society, 128 Pierrepont Street (corner of Clinton) will have another of its tours of the Society’s historic building on Saturday, November 10, starting at 3:00 p.m. Details are here. Looking ahead to Thursday, November 15, starting at 7:00 p.m., BHS will present a lecture by independent scholar and author Andrew Coe, “Spilt Milk: the Bloody Food Rackets of 20th Century New York,” about how gangsters controlled much of food distribution in New York City in the first half of the past century. Details are here.

Know of anything else interesting happening in Brooklyn Heights or nearby this weekend or in the near future? Add a comment to this post.


Source: Brooklyn Heights Blog
http://brooklynheightsblog.com/archives/51642

From the Web

A Post-Sandy Stroll Around Pier 1, Brooklyn Bridge Park

November 4, 2012

This morning I resumed my routine of taking a brisk walk along the Promenade, down Squibb Hill, around Pier 1, and back. I was anxious to see how this part of Brooklyn Bridge Park had weathered the hurricane. On the way in, I passed this blaze of fall foliage (click on image to enlarge). More photos and text after the jump.

Looking north along the riverside esplanade toward the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges.

A single, battered Rosa rugosa clings to its bush, surrounded by rose hips.

Frank Gehry’s 8 Spruce Street shows its Bernini drapery in the morning sunlight. A Machine, part of Oscar Tuazon’s “People” series of sculptures, is in the foreground.

The Brooklyn Bridge, seen through the trees.

Looking south along the Esplanade; the skeleton of the shed on Pier 2 is in the background.


Source: Brooklyn Heights Blog
http://brooklynheightsblog.com/archives/51203

From the Web

Brooklyn Heights, Kids

Lawsuit Over BBP Stainless Domes Settled

October 26, 2012

Today, the NY Post reports that the resulting lawsuit from the dangerous stainless steel domes in Brooklyn Bridge Park has been settled.  Reportedly, the plaintiff, who was one year old at the time, will receive $17,500.  According to the NY Times, the Brooklyn Bridge Park  Corporation and the park designer, Michael Van Valkenburg Associates, will split the cost of the settlement.


Source: Brooklyn Heights Blog
http://brooklynheightsblog.com/archives/49813

From the Web

Brooklyn Heights, Downtown Brooklyn, Landmark Preservation

WSJ: The Long & Storied History Of Gage & Tollner At 374 Fulton Street

October 23, 2012

The storied locale that housed Gage & Tollner restaurant from 1892 through the beginning of the millennium is both an endearing and bittersweet tale of Downtown Brooklyn’s history. New York City landmarked the eatery’s exterior in 1974 and a year later, its interior. It was the first landmarked dining room and the city’s third interior landmark of any kind. The first two were the New York Public Library and Grant’s Tomb.

In a lengthy piece in the Wall Street Journal, writer Barry Newman discusses the 120-year-old heritage of 374 Fulton Street, from the seafood restaurant owner’s purchase of the building in 1919 to its eventual demise. WSJ offers: In 1976, Fulton Street became a pedestrian mall, with no automobile traffic. The streets were scary, and the old crowd began eating elsewhere.” In 1985 then-owner Ed Dewey decided to sell the famous destination. In 1995, it filed for bankruptcy, before closing around 2004.

Since, it has held T.G.I. Friday’s, which lasted until 2007. Arby’s came next, in January 2010. It endured for just eight months. And in the summer of 2011, a discount costume jewelry store opened in the spot. WJS says, “The Landmarks commission says the landlord asked for a permit to make alterations after they were made. It denied the application for lack of detail and, this month, issued a violation. The commission, still lacking a satisfactory response, has issued another violation that can lead to a fine of $5,000 a day.”

Meanwhile, many of the original lighting fixtures from Gage & Tollner were stolen. Some mirrors and arches are said to survive behind bright pink panels. And what of the famous eatery that is no longer? Its last owners, Peter Aschkenasy and Joe Chirico still own the name. The latter says he’d like to reopen the restaurant “in a place where you can get to the front door.” And its Landmarked decor? In New York, he says, a crew can “replicate that in no time.” (Photo: Chuck Taylor/July 2010)


Source: Brooklyn Heights Blog
http://brooklynheightsblog.com/archives/49602

From the Web

Events, Landmark Preservation, Music

St. Ann’s & The Holy Trinity Hosts ‘Spirits Of Heights’ Restoration Gala

October 9, 2012

A celebration of “neighborhood greats” will take place Friday, October 19, 2012, from 6-9:30 p.m., at St. Ann & the Holy Trinity Church, 157 Montague Street. Featured at the “Spirits of Brooklyn Heights” gala are composer/lyricist Robert Lopez (“The Book of Mormon,” “Avenue Q”) and Harry Chapin’s daughter, urban/folk/soul singer Jen Chapin, who will perform from her own songbook along with songs from her legendary Brooklyn Heights’ resident papa, Harry Chapin. Also performing: Broadway and Off-Broadway actor Michael Winther (“Songs from An Unmade Bed,” “Mamma Mia!”), who will sing from jazz great Fred Hersch’s song cycle of Walt Whitman’s “Leaves of Grass.”

The gala will benefit the landmark church’s tower and organ restoration project, while honoring legends of literature, art and music with roots in Brooklyn Heights who shaped the borough’s legacy as a cultural center.

Cocktails will swirl from 6-7, followed by performances in the St. Ann’s sanctuary. Afterward, dinner, entertainment and a silent auction will take place in the Parish Hall. Tickets are $75 and tables of eight are $500. Space is limited. You’re advised to purchase tix in advance.

The church, which opened its doors in 1847, rests at the heart of Brooklyn Heights, at Montague and Clinton streets. A cornerstone in the historic development of the community, it remains an active house of worship and a venue for numerous musical and cultural events. While there has been significant restoration of the building, structural improvements to the tower on Clinton Street and its organ are now a major focus for continuing restoration.

Information and tickets are available at 718-875-6960 or office@stannholytrinity.org.


Source: Brooklyn Heights Blog
http://brooklynheightsblog.com/archives/49011

From the Web

Open Thread: The Most Beautiful Building In Brooklyn Heights

October 1, 2012

If you thought Best Burger in Brooklyn Heights was a tough choice, we continue the Brooklyn Heights Blog’s Best Of The Heights Open Thread with a category that I, for one, find next to impossible—thanks to an embarrassment of neighborhood riches…

What do you regard as the Most Beautiful Building in the Heights? Church, residential, commercial, whatever makes you swoon every time you walk by. As long as it’s made of wood, brick, concrete or masonry, has a door and windows, it’s up for consideration. Please include the address and why you believe it’s the consummate in architectural splendor.

If you’ve missed previous “Best Of” surveys, see them here: Best Burger, Best Dry Cleaner, Best Pizza Pie, Best Handyman, Best Car Service and Best Vet & Dog Walker. (Photo: Chuck Taylor)


Source: Brooklyn Heights Blog
http://brooklynheightsblog.com/archives/48578

From the Web

Brooklyn Heights, Landmark Preservation

Take A Look At Me Now: 62 Montague Street Reveals New Facade After Two-Year Restoration

August 28, 2012

The 10-story Queen Anne beauty at 62 Montague Street, near the entrance to the Promenade, is at last revealing its two-year massive facade restoration. In September 2010, the coop building began a meticulous project to repair and restore every iota of its brick, mortar and terra cotta exterior; this week, the scaffolding is coming down, level by level.

The Harbor View Apartments, later named The Arlington, were completed in 1887. The building was designed by Montrose W. Morris, with architectural firm Parfitt Brothers overseeing the project—as well as the Montague, Grosvenor and Berkeley apartment buildings on Montague Street.

The Arlington originally contained 20 family apartments and 10 “bachelor”—or studio—units. For its first 20 years, it was the tallest residence in the Heights. And now, it’s the building I call home. For more history, see the BHB post “A Love Letter To Brooklyn Heights” from March.

(Photos: current/Chuck Taylor; painting/John Lloyd; 1920 vintage/New York Library Archives)


Source: Brooklyn Heights Blog
http://brooklynheightsblog.com/archives/46493

From the Web

Brooklyn Heights Then & Now: Colonade Row At 43-49 Willow Place

August 26, 2012

Colonnade Row, built at 43-49 Willow Place in 1846, between Joralemon and State streets, is one of few examples in Brooklyn Heights of a particular style of Greek Revival. It was most popular around the late 1830s, with massive columns running the length of the buildings to give them a good bit of drama. Across the street is a second colonnaded home that is beginning to look more like a haunted house—originally part of four, although the other two have been “renovated” beyond recognition. The architect is unknown.
Vintage photo by Berenice Abbott, 1936. Current photo by Jeff Dobbins, New York Explorer.


Source: Brooklyn Heights Blog
http://brooklynheightsblog.com/archives/45690

From the Web

Brooklyn Heights Then & Now: Colonnade Row At 43-49 Willow Place

August 26, 2012

Colonnade Row, built at 43-49 Willow Place in 1846, between Joralemon & State streets, is one of few examples in Brooklyn Heights of a particular style of Greek Revival. It was most popular in the late 1830s, with massive columns running the length of the buildings to give them a good bit of drama. Across the street is a second Colonnade home that more resembles a haunted house—originally part of four, although the other two have been “renovated” beyond recognition. The architect is unknown.
Vintage photo by Berenice Abbott, 1936. Current photo by Jeff Dobbins, New York Explorer.


Source: Brooklyn Heights Blog
http://brooklynheightsblog.com/archives/45690

From the Web