Dec 12, 2025
WE START WITH THE THINGS WE FIND
an architecture bookstore and a public reading room in conversation with the sidewalk and street
2010
22nd street, New York
approx. 500 SF
Van Alen Institute
Sara Valente, project lead / Silman, structure
Craft Workshop, Andreas Scholtz
Danny Bright
2012 NCSEA Excellence in Structural Engineering
concept & vision
a 14-foot-tall seating platform crafted from a stack of 70 recycled doors ascends to create an amphitheater overlooking 22nd Street through glazed storefront windows
design & architecture
a new architecture and design bookstore and public reading room motivated by an urgent need for spaces where architecture books can be discovered and discussed, and by the equally urgent desire to engage with the street. The triangular installation splits the space in section creating a shared area for reading and conversation
impact & significance
lots of solid wood doors are sourced from Build It Green! NYC, a nonprofit supplier of salvaged building materials, and reimagined as a public space to gather
Dec 12, 2025
WE START WITH THE THINGS WE FIND