Van Alen Institute (VAI) Announces Van Alen Books - Spring 2011

"Van Alen Institute: Projects in Public Architecture is pleased to announce the launch of Van Alen Books, a new architecture and design bookstore and public reading room located at Van Alen Institute’s headquarters at 30 West 22nd Street in Manhattan’s Flatiron District. Opening on April 25, 2011, this highly visible storefront space will be New York City’s only book emporium and gathering place devoted singularly to architecture and design publications...

"The bookstore and its public programs are showcased in a new space designed by the architectural firm LOT-EK. Inviting the public to linger and browse, the store features a 14-foot-tall seating element crafted from a stack of 70 recycled doors, which create an amphitheater overlooking 22nd Street through glazed storefront windows. Sourced from Build It Green! NYC, a nonprofit supplier of salvaged building materials, the doors form a triangular platform evoking the steps of Times Square’s TKTS booth, an iconic project originated through Van Alen Institute’s 1999 design competition."

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