On May 5th and 6th, the Guggenheim will participate—along with 40 historic buildings, icons and landmarks in New York City—in Partners in Preservation, a program from the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Their aim is to raise awareness of the importance of historic places, and currently the museum has the opportunity to receive a $250,000 grant from them, which they would put towards the historic restoration of the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed front doors. more ›

The Guggenheim has invited creatives worldwide to come up with a way to fill the void at the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed museum, and starting on the 12th (through April 28th) you'll be able to see what the 200+ artists, architects, and designers imagined at the Contemplating the Void: Interventions exhibit. A few options are above; our favorite is JDS Architects, who proposed a spiraling trampoline net that looks really dangerous! more ›

The color of the Guggenheim's facade has been discussed over and over again, but did you know that Frank Lloyd Wright designed it to be red? More specifically, "Exterior: Red-marble and long-slim pottery red bricks." more ›

Today the Guggenheim Museum kicks-off a year-long celebration of art, architecture, and innovation to mark the 50th anniversary of its landmark building, and what better way to celebrate than with honoring Frank Lloyd Wright. Their From Within Outward exhibit will run through August 23rd and takes a look at the architect's vision from all angles. The anniversary celebrations won't just focus on the building's creator, however—on top of variety of exhibits, screenings of a documentary about the museum's past and present, and public events, there will also be city-wide celebrations. For instance, Mayor Bloomberg declared today Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Day! more ›

The Guggenheim sent out a press release yesterday the size of The Fountainhead describing their upcoming Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward exhibition (opening in May and running through August). In celebration of the building's 50 year anniversary the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation has helped them piece together the installation, which will present 64 projects designed by Wright, all displayed on the spiral ramps of the museum he designed. The CEO of the foundation says that, "Rather than a retrospective, this exhibition focuses on the diversity of Wright's vision and the ways he sought to realize it...The concept of the exhibition also reflects a growing recognition of the enormous relevance today of Frank Lloyd Wright's design philosophies, which embrace culture, technology and environment." Sad fact: Wright actually died six months prior to the grand opening of the Guggenheim. more ›

The art world is breathing a sigh of relief today as the announcement of The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation's director stepping down was announced. For many, Thomas Krens has been more of a dictator than director; with a focus on franchising a "McGuggenheim" business over exhibiting modern art or focusing on the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed building itself.

The Guggenheim flagship -- one of New York's top tourist attractions -- was falling apart. (Its crumbling facade is currently undergoing renovation.) Krens wasted considerable time and money trying to get the city to accept a second Gehry Guggenheim in Manhattan when he failed in his attempt to attract either steady streams of visitors or compelling exhibitions to a SoHo branch. (The space is now a Prada store.)

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a woman fell from a building at 35th St. and 5th Ave. in Manhattan, a body part was found on 20th Rd. and 18th St. in Queens, and a pedestrian was fatally struck at 50th St. and 6th Ave. in Brooklyn.
• Architects may lose the 408 foot spire that tops off the Freedom Tower because giant antennas may be technologically obsolete. An alliance of broadcasters are considering moving to a different technology and therefore not pay rent to a downtown mega-building.
• The FBI warned Al Sharpton that an inmate at an upstate prison may attempt to harm him via the mail. The inmate has sent several letters already containing a harmless powder, but the Feds want people at his office to err on the side of caution when handling packages and letters.
• The Landmarks Preservation Commission determined that the renovated Guggenheim Museum would remain grey, rather than reverting to the original color of the building selected by Frank Lloyd Wright.
• When striking writers from The Late Show with David Letterman aren't picketing they keep busy blogging.
• The painting that was rescued from the trash by a vigilant dumpster diver with an eye for art was sold at auction for more than $1 million.
• The new biodegradable to-go boxes used by NYU's dining services break down when exposed to heat and moisture. Unfortunately, that means food served hot and moist causes the boxes to leak almost immediately.
• Queens civic leaders want to preserve the Sunnyside Arch. The city's Municipal Arts Commission says that the arch should be redesigned and made more kitschy.

As we've mentioned, the Guggenheim is being renovated—but what's currently going on under all that scaffolding? Now that the museum has been stripped of its paint, it's time to order the paint cans. Unfortunately, the Guggenheim isn't sure what color to paint the exterior, because architect Frank Lloyd Wright actually chose a different shade of color for the building—a color that was painted over five years after the museum opened in 1959. more ›

The Plaza, you know that place where the kids in Gossip Girl hang out, is turning 100 years old today. The date is marked by the first guest to ever check in to the famed establishment. Who was it? The fancy-named Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt, and of course a PR-driven hotel manager was behind that. The NY Times reports that "His arrival was orchestrated by the Plaza’s first manager, who wanted the new hotel to open with a splashy, attention-getting stunt." more ›

This week NY Mag has a scathing analysis of Thomas Krens' tenure at the Guggenheim, calling the air around the museum during his 17-year reign "distorted and toxic." Writer Jerry Saltz says the museum is beginning to recover only now, two years after Lisa Dennison, who is now leaving to become executive vice president for Sotheby's North America, replaced him when he left to run the Guggenheim Foundation. more ›

TONY blog has a report on the most endangered sites in the world. The World Monuments Fund released its 2008 list yesterday, which is packed with far off places. more ›

Myspace.com/heresthethingcomedy is Sean O'Connor , Nick Maritato , and Andrew Wright . You're going to be hearing those names a lot starting February 6th when their show makes its debut at The People's Improv Theater. They'll lure you in with their line-ups, but it's their hilarious sketches and stand up is what's going to keep you coming back for more. more ›

This fall First Fridays at the Guggenheim returns beginning October 7, and we have 5 tickets to give away for "opening night". You can listen to NYC's hottest DJs (curated by Flavorpill) while sipping cocktails in the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed space. Not to mention, check out the only US venue for RUSSIA! - an exhibition of over 250 masterpieces from Russia's greatest museums. Here's this years First Fridays schedule. more ›

- Hey, wacky junkie Jewels, last seen on the ground in the NY Times, talks to the Village Voice! more ›

It's Frank Lloyd Wright's birthday today (thank you, Google, for the reminder), and Gothamist would like to take the time to think about the man. There was a time in Gothamist's life when we wished we could be Frank Lloyd Wright, because we were mesmerized after a visit to the Guggenheim Museum AND the This Old House where Bob Vila visited Taliesin West. Frank Lloyd Wright, a man of the Midwest, didn't really like New York City, as it was about grids and lines, so he broke that up with his circular plan for the Guggenheim. From the Guggenheim website's section about the building:

Wright made no secret of his disenchantment with Guggenheim's choice of New York for his museum: "I can think of several more desirable places in the world to build his great museum," Wright wrote in 1949 to Arthur Holden, "but we will have to try New York." To Wright, the city was overbuilt, overpopulated, and lacked architectural merit.

Matthew Barney's crazy contribution to art and film, The Cremaster Cycle, premieres in Los Angeles this week. The L.A. Times interviews him and points out: more ›