Walking Off the Big Apple

On the first day of racing of the first America's Cup in New York in 85 years, the wind was calm. All were waiting for the sun to break through the clouds, and the winds to pick up in a southerly direction, so the sails could set sail and the races could begin. Delay followed delay. Yet, tens of thousands of spectators remained to watch the fast boats and their international crews sail up and down the New York Harbor and the Hudson River for races that didn't transpire. Eventually, officials got in one race, deemed officially a "substitute race" if needed after the races the following day on Sunday.


Softbank Team Japan won the sole race on Saturday, followed by Sweden's Artemis Racing, Groupama Team France, Oracle Team USA, Land Rover BAR of Britain, and Emirates Team New Zealand. (More specifics from The Telegraph.) Identifying the sponsoring entity on the sailing yachts was much easier than trying to make out the individual national flags, given the relative si…

Hello, Marcel Breuer building, it's good to see you again.


For longtime museumgoers in New York City, returning to the austere and boxy building by architect Marcel Breuer (1902–1981) on Madison Avenue at 75th Street feels like going back to a childhood home. As the Whitney Museum of American Art for a half century, the building exuded a 60s modern vibe, with circular lights in the lobby ceiling and off-kilter windows framing views of graceful apartment buildings nearby. The famed Whitney Biennials played out under its high ceilings and in the cool courtyard spaces below street level. It was all a cool place.


For now, the Whitney is repurposed as The Met Breuer. The Metropolitan Museum of Art is leasing the space from the Whitney for eight years to house its growing collection of contemporary and modern art. The Whitney "parents" have moved on, unpacking their Hoppers in a larger new industrial-chic home in the Meatpacking District complete with outdoor decks and views o…