Saturday, March 29, 2008

A museum-worthy crap

The Queens Chronicle alerts us that the Italian American Museum Found a New Home at Mulberry and Grand Streets in Little Italy. Unsatisfied with the current quaint design, they plan to top it off with a King Kong-sized dung pile that spans the three buildings:
Notice how the crap oozes over the sides, replacing a column of windows. Just one example of how Italians are leaving their architectural mark on NYC.

28 comments:

Anonymous said...

In the name of ...well, I won't blaspheme by bringing Him into it, but this is totally insane.

If you need a third floor, why not just create one to match the bottom two?

Sheesh....

www.forgotten-ny.com

Anonymous said...

Leonardo would have barfed up his ravioli !

Centuries of Italian art, architecture,
music and culture have just gone down the drain
with this abortion!

I need a glass of "Brioschi "before I get sick!

Anonymous said...

You cannot tell me that a nation that produced a Milan, Rome or Venice would design this.

Can wait for the Chinese, Greek, and Mexican museums.

Fun! Fun! Fun!

Actually this is what happens when there is no recognized style and standard of tastes --- anything goes.

As said, just because you have money does not indicate you have taste or class.

Anonymous said...

move to West Virginia already, would you please. You are all dragging down the neighborhood.

Anonymous said...

Now a West Virginia town full of Italians would be interesting!

georgetheatheist said...

Joseph Scelsa is trying to justify his position as the Director of the Calandra Institute. It's a one-man operation with a secretary/go-fer.

Who's the architect? What would Brunelleschi do?

(BTW "Little Italy" is now demographically Chinese.)

georgetheatheist said...

"Anthoneee! Antoneeee! It's Prince spahetti time!"

georgetheatheist said...

"Hop-sing! Hop-sing! It's chow fun noodle time!"

Anonymous said...

Another example of fine Italian ingenuity is anything that Scarano designs.

Anonymous said...

"...there is no recognized style and standard of tastes," in art.

That's for sure!
Part of the problem may be money, which is the bottom line of every architect and developer. How can anyone build anything nice when they're weighing the cost of every brick and ounce of mortar? Nothing wrong with being economical, but not when taken to this extreme.

Anonymous said...

Im 3nd generation Italian and totally disgusted by this Italian Eurosh*t's plans of stucco and steel done on computers to make use of every scrap cut to save $$.
Places like Little Italy, Ridgewood were built brick by brick by real craftsmen and artists.

I doubt that will go through, sombody will be shot likley "disapper"

Anonymous said...

One of the top 5 worst design renderings citywide in the past decade! One would think the Italian-American Museum would have respect for their roots in the vicinity, but it's apparently one huge contradiction. Horrifying!

Anonymous said...

We should hope that the area would gain landmark status before it is obliterated, but the museum with its ill-conceived design is expected to open later this season. Darn!

verdi said...

I've already spoken to Don Ciccio about this
and he's "a gonna take care of uh things"!

Puttana la miseria,
disgrazziato, a la faccia museo di brutta!
(I hope I got that all right).

Anonymous said...

Find out why Shell is part of the problem.

http://www.fraudwater.com

Shell is building a giant new gas project to fuel irresponsible new greed megadevelopments in Queens, Brooklyn and Manhattan.

Find out what you can do to stop it!

http://www.fraudwater.com

Anonymous said...

I have seen better shit after eating a bag of White Castle burgers.

Anonymous said...

Quote: new gas project to fuel irresponsible greed & megadevelopment in Queens,

Yep, Shell, Bush, Bloomberg and the Dems running Congress want to stick it right up our ass !

The US Coast Guard said no way could it be protected, it could kill 4 million people clear 1/2 of Long Island and 1/2 CT coastline if hit by terrorists.
(Im sure Bloomberg, Bush and the rest of the Dem-liberal mob would see love all the old school New Yorkers dead, take the land and give it to all the new voters and Billionare's)

The fight over this is going to be WW III !!!

Anonymous said...

Italian-Americans are a fine, proud group. And I can't think of a single one of them that would be proud to have this piece of shit as a symbol of their heritage.

Italians through this city must call on the morons in charge of this project and tell them they must not embarass our people.

Anonymous said...

Now a West Virginia town full of Italians would be interesting!

-------

They are called 'I-talians' in West Virginny, son.

You would be surprised how many live in that state. Actually laid the rail lines and stayed on to work the the mines.

Anonymous said...

"Ridgewood were built brick by brick by real craftsmen and artists."

Ridgewood was built by Germans, like Berger and Mathews who used Kriecherville brick.

But everyone in those days, put up buildings to last. They, German, Italian, Irish, whatever, took pride in ther work.

Anonymous said...

I lived in one of the Stier row houses on Seneca Ave and Norman street.
Cost $36K in 1971, everbody had figs and tomatos growing in the yard. Then the old Germans died off and there kids sold to anybody.

Now much of the sandstone stoops and iron work is gone replaced with brick gates and steel bars on the windows.

All the London Plane trees (the ones that drop the itchie balls) are gone.
The Asians and Mid Eastern's landlords drilled holes and poured battery acid in them so they dont have to sweep !!
(Lower Ridgewood)

......Ahhhh Makes me sick, Even a Pizza Hut and Taco Bell down there !!

Anonymous said...

The architect must have been looking for inspiration when he saw a dog take a crap, and a little light bulb went on and he thought.. yes, let me design a building that looks like a fresh pile of doggie shit. And he's done a pretty damn fine job of that. Maybe he'll take it to the next level and make the pile steam when the weather is cold. Perhaps open up the sewers to add the appropriate smell. Maybe they'll face it with a special material that turns white as it ages.

Anonymous said...

If someone wanted to design a meseum to look like a piece of feces, it should have been a dedicated to the mayor Michael Bloomberg legacy, a fitting tribute to what he's allowing the city to turn into.

The design should not be used to insult Italian heritage.

Anonymous said...

Only "IGNORANCE AND J-E-A-L-O-U-S-Y can account for all the "crap" you all proclaim. But the questions is: Did any of you gave a "crap" or at least A-T-T-E-M-P-T-E-D to do ANYTHING about trying to P-R-E-S-E-R-V-E your "so called" Italian heritage?
Why do so many of our young Italian Americans can not even speak Italian? Could it be because their own "un-educated" parents wanted "NOTHING" to do with preserving their heritage?
Of course, now that someone has the "GUTS" to confront and succeed against ALL obstacles.....you CRITICIZE!
Take a good look in your mirror and ask your self if you are "worthy" of proclaiming to be an ITALIAN.
A building is JUST A BUILDING. What really counts is that for once New York will have a place where Italians-Americans can reconnect with their ancestry.
By the way - I'M NOT EVEN ITALIAN! But my kids have Italian ancestry and I want them to be proud of both their heritages.

Anonymous said...

Yeah well the topic of this site is ugly buildings. And this sure qualifies. It's fucking hideous.

Anonymous said...

State Senator Serf Maltese is a big contributor to the crapping of Little Italy.

Anonymous said...

The little red building is-was charming. The new building is not charming. Its cold and mishapen, and not on a human scale.
The new building is once again
DESIGN for DESIGN sake. LOOK AT US...we can DESIGN! Rather than present a form that serves a function and design style that the neighborhood would appreciate. Aren't the architects just full of themselves. When will new city architecture begin to serve the people not the architects???!!! Its not just NY. Design appreciation has exploded in the last 5 years due to the internet. That seems to be giving designers a false sense of importance. Its always about who and what purpose the building should serve, not about design exclusively. So hear that architects its not about you.

Anonymous said...

One last thing, When the rest of us out-of-staters come to New York to visit, its not the fancy-shmancy high-tech architecture that we want to see, it is definately the charming and authentic New York - that New York history grew one neighborhood at a time, Little Italy, China Town, whatev-a. How about creative rennovation vs new bizzare architecture that just DOES NOT FIT the environment. When it doesn't fit - it ain't right... its right ...when it fits. Betty.