New York Gets Its Own Spanish Steps

New York is looking to Italian piazzas as models for its new outdoor plaza. Thomas Campbell, the director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art admits his muse when he explains where he got the idea to reinvent the public space in front of the museum building on 5th Avenue. “We looked to the iconic stairway of the Piazza di Spagna, obviously. Inevitably, I’d say, since we are trying to harmonize the entrance to our museum with the surrounding urban landscape.”*

David H. Koch also seems to recognize the need for architectural harmony at the Met. He is the billionaire who proposed the transformation of the surroundings of the famed steps and will be financing the project with $65 million of his own money. “I love Italian piazzas, and I am especially fond of the fountains of Rome. I’m not saying that we’re trying to replicate them, because that would be an impossible endeavor, but we certainly used them as models to create a newer version of the same concept. We’re hoping that our version will become the classic archetype of our time.”*

This undertaking represents one of the most ambitious urban construction projects underway in New York at the moment. The official groundbreaking ceremony took place yesterday morning, marking the beginning of the reconstruction of the entrance space to the Met, which along with Times Square is one of the most visited public spaces in Manhattan. Just last year, more than 6 million people pounded the pavement that spans almost four blocks on 5th Avenue from 80th to 84th street overlooking Central Park. “A while ago” says Koch, “I took part in the revitalization of the fountain in front of Lincoln Center. I thought that it would be wonderful to have something similar in front of the Metropolitan Museum. At the moment the space is frigid, it looks like a prison and I think it wards people off rather than drawing them to the museum. I spoke immediately to the president Emily Rafferty, who struck me as enthusiastic about the project because the old façade hadn’t been renovated in forty years. When I told her I would finance the entire project, it took off immediately.”*

The digging started yesterday and the new space will be opened to the public in 2014. Campbell eagerly embraced the ambitious initiative. He sees it as an extension of his philosophical mission for the museum onto the streets of New York. “Our museum is a major institution for both academic and cultural life and I am determined to make the most of these positive influences. However, accessibility has become a fundamental question of modern society, one that any structure wishing to communicate with the public must take into serious consideration. We are working diligently on this point by implementing, for example, various programs that are expanding the online presence of the Metropolitan. The restructuring of the steps seems to be the perfect aesthetic and physical complement to this idea.”*

It is not purely by chance that inspiration came at least in part from Italy: “The space on 5th Avenue –explains Campbell- is the face of our museum that presents itself to the public, and welcomes visitors to enter our landmark building. Hopefully the space will transform itself into a permanent center for meeting and dialogue. Italian piazzas were always constructed for this very purpose, which is why they were a not only a basis for our aesthetic, but also a font of inspiration for the function of the space.”*

As Koch said, the objective is not to replicate the model of the classic Italian piazzas because it would be impossible and likely counterproductive, but rather to realize a new space which will achieve a sort of modern timelessness reminiscent of classical squares. Mayor Bloomberg frequently expresses a similar ambition and wants to considerably expand as much as possible the car-free pedestrian space surrounding Times Square. This all remains in line with New York’s overarching mantra which couples a ceaseless quest for innovation with a deep rooted reverence for that which came before.

*Editor’s note: These quotations, while accurately translated, could not be verified.