New York’s newest public park floats above the Hudson River, the Serpentine Gallery names the designer for next year’s pavilion, and HD’s annual hotels issue is now out. All that and more in this week’s Five on Friday.
Theaster Gates to design 2022 Serpentine Pavilion
Photo by Victoria Pickering/Flickr
Chicago-based artist Theaster Gates has been named the designer of London’s 2022 Serpentine Pavilion. With a background in urban planning, Gates will be the first pavilion designer who is not an architect, the Architects’ Journal reports. Design details are in their infancy, as the Serpentine Galleries currently prepares to unveil its 2021 building by Counterspace next month in London’s Kensington Gardens. Gates is known for public artwork with an emphasis on social justice. Through his Dorchester Projects in Chicago, he purchases rundown buildings on the city’s South Side and reimagines them as community centers and cultural institutions in collaboration with architects and designers. He also helms the Place Lab, a partnership between Arts + Public Life and the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago.
Little Island is unveiled in New York
Photo by Timothy Schenck
The long-anticipated Little Island in New York’s Hudson River from developer-philanthropist Barry Diller is now open to the public, following nearly eight years of development and construction, reports the New York Times. Designed by British architect Thomas Heatherwick, the $260-million elevated, sloping parkland sits upon planters that host more than one hundred different species of indigenous trees and plants. Also home to a 700-person amphitheater and a more intimate 200-seat amphitheater, Little Island aims to reactive Manhattan’s western piers with a showcase of the biodiversity able to thrive in New York. “Our intention has been to make an exciting space that is free for everybody to come to, that treats the river as part of nature as well as plants and even each other,” Heatherwick says. “As well as making multiple spaces for different activities and performances, this new public space could also take advantage of the water to create a more meaningful threshold that allows visitors to feel they’re having a break from the hecticness of the city.” Read more about Little Island, along with two other bold sustainable projects, in a piece from HD’s April 2021 issue.
Dasha Zhukova launches art-centric real estate
The forthcoming Ray Philly; rendering by Luxigon
Art patron and philanthropist Dasha Zhukova is arguably best known for launching the Garage Museum of Contemporary Art in Moscow, but she is slated to grow her legacy as she brings her artistic prowess into the real estate world. Surface reports that Zhukova’s latest venture, Ray, will stake its claim in the sector by bringing “art, culture, and thoughtful design” to the multi-residential real estate market. The maiden project will include the transformation of the historic National Black Theatre in Harlem into a 21-story building designed by Mexican architect Frida Escobedo. In addition to 222 units available at or below market rate, the buildings will host classes, workshops, and programming from local artists and institutions. A 110-unit design by Leong Leong will follow in Philadelphia’s Fishtown neighborhood.
Outdoor dining may be here to stay
Quality Bistro’s outdoor dining setup, designed by GRT Architects
Mask restrictions may be easing as indoor dining is expanding, but restaurants in New York will likely not be as quick to scrap the outdoor seating configurations crafted in the last year. What began to accommodate safety concerns and financial uncertainty has now emerged as a fixture across all five boroughs. Upscale eateries like Quality Bistro in Manhattan and Black Forest in Brooklyn spoke with Eater NY about plans to continue maximizing sidewalk real estate to recoup initial investments. Quality Branded, which oversees six popular eateries including Quality Bistro, put forth nearly $1 million on outdoor dining setups across its locations. Luckily, diners have adapted, and the visual identity of the culinary landscape now begins with each restaurant’s respective outdoor seating design. The longevity of what was once a short-term solution may officially be confirmed this fall if the city council’s Open Restaurants legislation, which is slated to expire in September, is expanded to support permanent streetside dining structures.
Check in to HD’s hotels issue
Kalesma Mykonos in Greece, designed by Studio Bonarchi and K-Studio
Our May Issue has hit the stands with pages and pages of striking hotel designs to inspire and incite wanderlust as our world reopens. The annual hotel hot list returns with 30 highly anticipated 2021 openings from across the globe that channel both the charms of the Old World and innovative design. The latest issue also features an in-depth overview of the Auberge brand’s past, present, and future. Plus, trailblazing hoteliers like Adrian Zecha discuss how they stand out in the industry and what the hospitality market’s new terrain holds. Read the digital edition here.
More from HD:
The 36 Most Anticipated Hotel Openings of 2021
AutoCamp’s Ryan Miller Redefines Luxury Outdoor Getaways
The Tiing Tejakula Villas Take Cues From Bali’s Vernacular
