Even if it's just to get a shower curtain at Bed Bath & Beyond during lunch, I get excited taking the subway to Lincoln Center. Lincoln Center is still the greatest symbol of New York to me. I saw ballet dancers warming up in a practice room at Alice Tully Hall. I saw a guy carrying a trombone in a soft case & thought of my friend Ellen. I saw a lady on the subway who looked just like Leontyne Price. We smiled at each other sweetly.

66th Street Lincoln Center, 1 train downtown

The latest in the Patina Restaurant Group's oeuvre, Lincoln, opens today in NYC!


The facade on 65th Street. Look closely: these are all names of films.

Designed by Diller, Scofidio + Renfro, the looks of Lincoln from 65th Street.

The new restaurant/lawn behind Avery Fisher Hall near the reflecting pool won't be called the "Lincoln Center Hypar Restaurant" as I thought in July 2009. Although it is a hypar, the name will be more plainly spoken (written): Lincoln. And rumor has it, it's opening today! When I was at Lincoln Center for Fashion Week last week, I got a glimpse, snapped some pics, and asked a lot of questions. The menu will be continental Italian. The chef will be Jonathan Benno, formerly of Aqua, French Laundry, Daniel, Gramercy Tavern, Craft, and most recently, Per Se. Sounds great! I'd eat anything at this restaurant, just to experience the space. But since Lincoln is part of the Patina Restaurant Group, I'm pretty sure the food will be good.

And by the way, a hypar is a hyperbolic paraboloid shape. Get it? Think of it as a 3-d parallelogram with a sexy curve.


Lincoln Ristorante
142 W 65th Street
Lincoln Center
New York
212.359.6500

Getting set up for the special Fashion Week event


Some of the fashionable get to sample Lincoln's hospitality during NYFW


I love the angles


under the eaves


The reflecting pond


Very steep steps to get up to the lawn. I wore heels. Tricky terrain.


The lawn is so lovely! And the smell of real grass is like heaven to a New Yorker.
Real grass!


And look at the views!


This is one heck of a lawn.

Futuristic & new covered walkways. Doesn't this shot
look like an architectural rendering rather than a photo?


This sign is new too. And I'm sure it lights up at night.

This photographer loved these two, so I jumped behind
him to shoot him shooting them.

I cannot express how much unexpected fun I had yesterday taking the 1 up to Lincoln Center to study the new New York Fashion Week. I didn't expect to love it. But Lincoln Center has always cast a magic spell over me, ever since I was a kid and dreamed of becoming first clarinet at the New York Philharmonic. (Yes, when you're in the 4th grade you can dream big. I used to play clarinet rather seriously, but then my life turned towards Japanese Art in college, and later, fashion, after college. It's strange how many twists and turns one's life takes...)

As usual, the people-watching at Fashion Week was fantastic. I may go back today to take more pictures and enjoy the scenery.

I love these (I'm guessing) Upper West Side ladies.
The composition with the 2 cops in the background
was a happy accident.


I love the graphic white lines of the ground and the Philharmonic
in the background.


Rachel Roy models handing out cleverly shaped lookbooks.


This man was perhaps the biggest character.


I don't get why a Starbucks safari girl is with the cameraman.


Again, so glad I got this shot.

Sorry, Bryant Park. Normally I am a fan of you in every way. You know that. But when it comes to Lincoln Center -- the grandeur, the 60s architectural beauty, the drama -- you just can't compete. And imagine the tony parties that can be held on the balconies!

This first production of New York Fashion Week at Lincoln Center is better in every way. There had to be set designers involved in the design of The Tents. Just look at the monolith they built! And the secret? The marble that exactly matches the signature (and oh-so-stunning) Lincoln Center marble is actually fabric! Printed fabric that has been stretched over a metal armature. If I hadn't seen the metal armature a few weeks ago when we watched Dr Atomic at the Met's HD Festival, I would have never known. And the disembodied dress. I love it. It seems like it's something out of The Tales of Hoffman. Bravo Lincoln Center!

I'll be back with fashionable crowd shots tomorrow.

My favorite mosaic of Aida on the 1 platform at 66th Street.

I took a lunchtime jaunt up to Lincoln Center to check out the new venue for Fashion Week. I had mixed feelings when I heard about this some years ago, but I think the set-up is so much better than at Bryant Park. Plus we who work in the Garment District get to keep our Lawn and our longer ice skating season. It's a win-win. I got some good shots which I'll post a little later. Stay tuned!

Bryant Park on this beautiful day today, with plenty of Lawn
and happy people on the Lawn.

A Tweet from RackedNY this morning!

I can't. I believe in free fashion shows. They should always be free. As they are in Paris, Milan and New York. $400? Oh well. Let them eat cake.

[video still from Diller Scofidio + Renfro's new Hypar Restaurant at Lincoln Center]

So this is what they are planning at Lincoln Center. A new restaurant/lawn behind Avery Fisher Hall near the reflecting pool. Lincoln Center Hypar Restaurant, as it will be called when it opens in 2010. What is a hypar, you ask? Why it is a hyperbolic paraboloid of course. Click here. Designed by the same architects who did the High Line, the redesign of Alice Tully Hall, and Boston's ICA, among other projects. Diller Scofidio + Renfro. Good stuff.

View the video.