Lower Manhattan Plan, 1970
Masterplan Presentation Plan
Under apprenticeship with Conklin & Rossant, New York City
Upon returning to the States from a Fulbright Study abroad, the New York City architecture and planning firm, Conklin and Rossant hired me as an apprentice architect. Working and living in NYC during the late 60s opened a new world of possiblity for me. C&R was involved with huge architecture and urban design projects, and I was assigned mostly to design and graphic communication of these big ideas--just my cup of tea. Working with Bill Conklin and Jim Rossant was an honor, and they taught me in a way that was not possible in school. Although most of what we were working on was never realized, due primarily to the war economy, the firm was undaunted in its visionary approach to the future of urban design.
One weekend I was working on a deadliine charrette, and had the rare privilege of watching Jim Rossant working on a large pencil on mylar perspective sketch of Battery Park City--a view of the lower end of Manhattan along the Hudson, illustrating the urban design proposal for large multi-use megastructure between the World Trade Center (in construction at that time) and the River. Just watching Jim draw the City with such magnificent gesture, was thrilling and empowering to a young designer. At the end of the day, the mylar was so smudged that I thought it was spoiled. But, no; Martin Cantor, the office manager, the only person Jim trusted to do it, took a kneaded eraser and brought out highlights and chiaroscuro that made the drawing jump into space.The sense of verve that I experienced from them that day has been a great inspiration in the development of my own graphic communication. Many thanks, Jim, Bill, and Martin!
