Results tagged “theunitednations”

The United Nations has been called a firetrap by a number of elected officials, Mayor Bloomberg among them. He recently demanded that the building stay on track to fix its many violations of the fire code.

The United Nations is finally moving ahead with plans to renovate its headquarters on Manhattan's East Side. The organization selected Swedish contractor Skanska AB to head up the preconstruction phase of the $1 billion project. Never known for being quick on its feet, a U.N. renovation project has been talked about since the mid-90s and is scheduled to take place in three phases over seven years, starting in early 2008.

As part of the 60th anniversary celebration of the United Nations, the international organization is giving free tours on Sundays this month. Gothamist went to the UN this past Sunday for a tour which lasted all of 30 minutes. During the tour, which seems to be English only (the regular tour costs $11.50 for adults and is in multiple languages), the guides point out several murals and gifts to the UN and visitors are shown the Security Council (pictured above), the Trusteeship Council, and the General Assembly.

Maki's buildings, like the Fujisawa Municipal Gym in Fujisawa, Japan (picture, right), are considered to be in the International Style modernism, much like the U.N. Headquarters by Wallace K. Harrison. Another example of International Style modernism: The Lever House.