It often takes an extensive lapse of time to discover what has been gained through progress. By this same token, and perhaps even more importantly, time unveils what we have lost. The New-York Historical Society (NYHS) recently pulled back the veil on some of the great monuments, works of art, and places regrettably lost to the march of change, progress, and expansion. This exhibit called “Lost New York” opened on April 19 and will continue through Sept. 29, 2024.
According to Wendy Nalani E. Ikemoto, NYHS vice president and chief curator, she had been considering creating this exhibit for some time, but it was not until the Society received two pieces of New York City-related art that she was able to do so.
“We acquired two monumental works by Richard Haas showing New York City from the same vantage point over 100 years apart,” she said. “The first painting shows Manhattan in 1855 looking southward from the Latting Observatory, which was built on 42nd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues for the 1853 Exhibition of the Industry of All Nations. The second painting shows the same view 140 years later.”
"Untitled (View of Manhattan Looking South from the Latting Observatory)," 2006, by Richard Haas. Acrylic on canvas. Gift of Cooley LLP, New-York Historical Society. New-York Historical Society
An Artistic Time Capsule
Haas’s painting, representing 1855, was an “unobstructed” view of Manhattan Island with Brooklyn and Richmond (now Staten Island) in the distance. This view included the Crystal Palace and the Croton Reservoir; the Crystal Palace was replaced by the New York Library and the reservoir by Bryant Park in the second painting. Ms. Ikemoto noted that the second painting also reflected Manhattan’s current “dense maze of skyscrapers which blocks the formerly open vista.”
"Untitled (View of Manhattan Looking South Toward the Empire State Building)," 1994, by Richard Haas. Acrylic on canvas. Gift of Cooley LLP, New-York Historical Society. New-York Historical Society
“These two works trace the loss of a historical New York and in that sense encapsulate what this show is all about,” she said.
“Lost New York” is a long stroll down New York City’s collective memory lane. According to the exhibit’s description, visitors are encouraged to absorb all of the “landmarks, vistas, pastimes, environments, monuments, communities, and modes of transportation that once defined New York” through the visual tour of “more than 90 paintings, photographs, objects, and lithographs.” Although the exhibit focuses on the past, it is also about the future.
Loss and Recovery
“We'd like visitors to reminisce about the various landmarks that no longer exist, but we’d also like them to think carefully about why some buildings are preserved and others are not,” Ms. Ikemoto said. “As much as the show is about loss, it’s also about recovery and resonance and the importance of memory and community. Landmarks in New York―and really everywhere―are central to the idea of community. People gather around landmarks, and those landmarks become part of the life and identity and history of a city.”
It is through pieces of work like those of the eminent mural artist, Mr. Haas, that helps keep history in the collective mind’s eye. One artwork that has remained in the mind’s eye is Augusta Savage’s sculpture, celebrating black music and honoring President Lincoln, which she created for the 1939 New York World’s Fair. Like other World’s Fair-related monuments, this 16-foot homage to black music was torn down after the World’s Fair ended in 1940. A small replica of the monument is on display at the exhibit, but according to Ms. Ikemoto, the New York City organization Monumental Women, recently announced the initiative to recreate the monument.
The exhibit may inspire individuals or groups, like Monumental Women, to recreate historical landmarks and works of art. No doubt most of what has been lost to history is lost for good, like the Crystal Palace, the Croton Reservoir, and the McKim, Mead, and White Beaux-Arts styled Pennsylvania Station, which stood for over 50 years before it was demolished. In fact, the loss of this majestic train station, which rivaled the still-standing Grand Central Terminal, initiated the creation of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. The Commission and its advocacy for landmark preservation laws ultimately saved Grand Central Terminal from Pennsylvania Station’s fate.
Jules Crow's watercolor "Pennsylvania Station Interior" (1906) shows the beauty of this classically built train station. Sadly, artistic depictions and photographs are all that's left of the station after it was demolished in 1963. Watercolor, ink, and graphite on paper. Patricia D. Klingenstein Library, New-York Historical Society. New-York Historical Society
If anything, the exhibit serves as a reminder of the importance of preservation. For Ms. Ikemoto, preservation is more than about retaining buildings and landmarks, it’s also about preserving “the stories of people who remember or are otherwise connected to these lost landmarks.”
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