New York Deco [Hardcover]

Richard Berenholtz (Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2005

New York calls to mind many things: the Chrysler Building with its innovative design and sunburst pattern, the Empire State building with its amazing views and dominating size, Rockefeller Center seamlessly merging commerce and art. Each of these cherished pieces of New York were created during one of the cities most stylish and dazzling decades: the 1920s and 30s. New York Deco profiles this magnificent period of creativity in architecture when art deco thrived with its emphasis on machine-tooled elegance and sleek lines. Many of the New York City landmarks were born of this age, as well as dozens of lesser—known office buildings and apartment houses. Together, they make the skyline of the Big Apple what it is today.

Richard Berenholtz’s “extraordinary” and “voluptuous” photographs have offered the best of New York in the large scale New York New York and Panoramic New York and now brilliantly highlight the finest examples of NYC’s art deco architecture. Berenholtz’s photography is accompanied by text from writers, artists, and personalities of the era, including F. Scott Fitzgerald, Dorothy Parker, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Ogden Nash, and Frank Lloyd Wright to create a wonderful celebration of the era. A perfect gift for the New Yorker and tourist alike, this gem of a book is a window into one of city’s most divine periods.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

New York's most obvious examples of the streamlined architectural style-the Empire State Building, Chrysler Building and Rockefeller Center-figure prominently in this book, but it's the less notorious buildings and the attention given to architectural details that shine brightest in this paean to old Gotham. Evoking the emotional appeal of interiors, Berenholtz captures the scintillating gold mosaics within the reception hall of the Irving Trust Building. An added enticement is the inclusion of lesser known landmarks that will be familiar to careful observers of late twentieth cinematography: The Lenox Lounge once played host to jazz greats Billie Holiday and John Coltrane and was featured in Spike Lee's Malcolm X; Scorsese buffs will recognize the gritty glamour of the Airline Diner from Goodfellas. Because of the book's diminutive size, some studies, most notably of Rockefeller Center and the Empire State Building, aren't as powerful as they could be, but interiors and exterior bric-a-brac, often overlooked in New York architecture books, take center stage here.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

New York's most obvious examples of the streamlined architectural style-the Empire State Building, Chrysler Building and Rockefeller Center-figure prominently in this book, but it's the less notorious buildings and the attention given to architectural details that shine brightest in this paean to old Gotham. Evoking the emotional appeal of interiors, Berenholtz captures the scintillating gold mosaics within the reception hall of the Irving Trust Building. An added enticement is the inclusion of lesser known landmarks that will be familiar to careful observers of late twentieth cinematography: The Lenox Lounge once played host to jazz greats Billie Holiday and John Coltrane and was featured in Spike Lee's Malcolm X; Scorsese buffs will recognize the gritty glamour of the Airline Diner from Goodfellas. ...[The] interiors and exterior bric-a-brac, often overlooked in New York architecture books, take center stage here. —Publishers Weekly --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Welcome Books (September 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1932183841
• ISBN-13: 978-1932183849
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 0.7 x 8.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,428,859 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ART DECO IN THE NYC, November 17, 2008

By 

Shannon Deason (Houston) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: New York Deco, Limited Edition (Hardcover)

Let me state straight up, I love Art Deco architecture, the elegance the high style, it reeks of class. The photography in this book is spectacular, granted it helps that the subject matter is breathtaking. This is the Deluxe addition and is priced as such. It comes autographed and it has a limited edition run. As for as im concerned it is totally worth the price, this is the kind of book that will increase in value because book collectors appreciate fine books and amazing photography. To no surprise my favorite images in this book are of the iconic Chrysler Building and the equally impressive Rockefeller Center. Art Deco symbolizes at time in america of dreams crushed and dreams created. Rockefeller Center was Jr's way of helping put Americans to work during the Depression and the Chrysler Building represents Art Deco before the depression, the limitless possiblities and the reaching for the heavens. If you have any interest at all in Art Deco, then I cant imagine you not wanting this to have pride of place in your book collection. Highly recommended.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The living Deco city, May 13, 2007

By 

Robin Benson - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: New York Deco (Hardcover)

The lovely Rockefeller Center rightly kicks of this photographic Deco tour of New York. The exteriors of the six buildings have delights everywhere, for all to see, too.

The book though is very generalised and probably aimed at the tourist market because it has no contents, index or bibliography. What it does have are plenty of close-ups of the detail work that seems to adorn so many Manhattan buildings, frequently way above street level so that these gems are mostly missed. There is a super shot of one of the Chrysler eagles on pages 148-9, or the ornamental metalwork of a lightning bolt and a bird on the General Electric Tower, page fifty-one.

The one hundred and thirty eight photos are all in color and each has an informative caption. Between the photos text pages contain thoughts on Big Apple by a variety of writers and historical personalities, which again suggest the title is really a keepsake aimed at the visitor.

A similar photo book by Carla Breeze New York Deco, though lacking in so many close-ups takes a more guide book approach with copy and photos covering commercial, residential, entertainment, public and religious buildings plus an index and bibliography. If your curiosity goes further David Garrard Lowe's fascinating Art Deco New York, sums it all up within a serious historical perspective.

***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just gorgeous!, May 26, 2010

By 

S. Mudgway "Sazabi" (Palmerston North, New Zealand) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: New York Deco, Limited Edition (Hardcover)

While recently doing some research on the incredible Chrysler Building I came across this book on Amazon. I checked out the reviews, opted for the deluxe, a short time later it arrived in New Zealand. I wonder if the citizens of New York take for granted the fantastic, artistic, vibrant city in which they reside. To have architecture so wondrous, so luxurious, right in your back yard truly must be incredible. I am 6'4", and I hate long distance flying with a passion, but the photos in this book have inspired me to make a firm promise to myself: that I will visit this amazing city in the not too distant future. For a book to move one this much is a rarity. It now takes pride of place on our lounge coffee table. The quotations (mainly from the Deco period) are inspiring. At a time when everything in the world is so incredibly serious, the daily grind wears you down, and it is obvious there can never be a return to simpler times, take a breath, grab a vino, flick through this book and be transported back to a time of beauty and adventure.