Museum from Home: The Panorama at the Queens Museum

Created by Robert Moses and model maker Raymond Lester for the New York City Pavilion at the 1964 World’s Fair, the Panorama of the City of New York was built on a scale of 1:1,200 (1 inch equals 100 ft). It occupies 9,335 sq feet, includes a total of 895,000 individual structures, represents 320 square miles of land mass and 771 miles of shoreline of New York’s five boroughs. It also includes miniature cars, boats and trains, as well as an airplane landing and taking off at LaGuardia Airport.

More on the Making of NYC

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, this was cow country, and these cows used to be ferried across the Hudson River from New Jersey.

By 1913, Grand Central Terminal was opened and received 150,000 visitors on that day alone.

If you've ever wondered why we call neighborhoods by acronyms like SoHo, NoLita, and SoBro, you can thank (or blame) Chester Rapkin who first coined the the term "SoHo" in 1962.  

A Look at Tokyo's Socio-Architectural Landscapes

Originally scheduled to complement the anticipation prior to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Japan Society’s Made in Tokyo: Architecture and Living 1964/2020 exhibition examined Tokyo’s dynamic terrain, including detailed plans across the city from urban infrastructure to retail. From the development of spaces like Yoyogi National Stadium, the New National Stadium, Ginza Sony Park, Ginza Six, and Shinjuku Station, we’re asked to specifically consider the changing socio-architectural landscape of Tokyo between the 1964 and 2020 Summer Games. How does architecture embody the city's transition? What role has architecture played in developing Tokyo? 

Pictured here: HAGISO renovated: 2013, Mitsuyoshi Miyazaki, Hagi Studio.

While the exhibition isn't on view anymore, check out the official preview video or watch this video walkthrough.

Trivia answer: B) Crooklyn

Sophie's Choice involved filming in Flatbush, Saturday Night Fever involved filming in Bay Ridge, and Death of a Salesman (1985) involved filming in Astoria. 

Stay healthy and well,

Your friends at Gesso xx