More on architectural photography.

Ruth Orkin was a Manhattan based photographer who just happened to live in an apartment in the Dakota at 72nd and Central Park West. From that location, overlooking Central Park, she took many pictures though the seasons, the whole glorious project being enshrined in her book:

The idea that a slice of Central Park constitutes “The World” is a uniquely New York kind of arrogance, but we can let it go. The photography is superb. It’s out of print at Amazon so try your favorite remaindered or used bookseller for this one.

Seeing as I lived at 56th and Eight when in Manhattan, my views were not as pastoral as Orkin’s but fascinating nonetheless. My windows faced south (you could see the Hudson and Sixth Avenue’s boxy skyscrapers) and East (where the money was).

The first thing you saw looking east was the Mutual of New York building, replete with multi-purpose meterological indicators. Between the digital display and the mutli-colored spire and the star on top you were meant to be able to divine temperature, humidity, rain, sun or snow and, needless to say, the thing was wrong 90% of the time. But it was lots of fun to look at and photograph.

MoNY in winter. Pentax ME Super, 28mm Takumar, Kodachrome 64.

MoNY in the spring. Same data as above.