Lukas Novotny, "Modern New York: The Illustrated Story of Architecture in the Five Boroughs from 1920 to Today" (Rizzoli, 2023)

About this episode

Lukas Novotny discusses his book on the evolution of architecture in New York City from 1920 to today.

In Modern New York: The Illustrated Story of Architecture in the Five Boroughs from 1920 to Today (Rizzoli, 2023), Lukas Novotny calls attention not just to the icons-- the Empire State, Chrysler, or Seagram, but also to overlooked fine new buildings in the outer boroughs. Here too, in dozens of illustrated sidebars, we glimpse the evolution of city buses, cabs, ferry boats, tugs and airplanes. A delight for tourist or scholar! But we are also left to wonder--did the incessant demand to maximize square footage in new building result in “modern” once iconic, becoming tedious ? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

People in this episode

Guest: Lukas Novotny

Topics covered

• architecture
• urban studies
• New York City
• history
• illustrated books

Keywords

• architecture
• New York
• urban development
• illustrated story
• historical buildings
• modern architecture
• city evolution

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Rizzoli

Books & works: Modern New York: The Illustrated Story of Architecture in the Five Boroughs from 1920 to Today

Places: New York, Five Boroughs

More episodes of New Books in Urban Studies

• Don Thomas Deere, "The Invention of Order: On the Coloniality of Space" (Duke UP, 2026) · June 11, 2026 · 46 min
• Michael Dillon, "Shanghai: The Story of China's Most Dynamic City" (Yale UP, 2026) · June 9, 2026 · 47 min
• Tania Sengupta and Stuart King eds., "Reclaiming Colonial Architecture" (Routledge, 2024) · June 9, 2026 · 56 min
• Bruce Dearstyne, "Revolutionary New York: 250 Years of Social Change" (SUNY Press, 2026) · June 8, 2026 · 31 min
• Javier Arbona-Homar, "Explosivity: Following What Remains" (U Minnesota Press, 2025) · June 8, 2026 · 1h 6m
• Kristian Williams, "Policing the Progressive City: Portland, Oregon, from Settlement to Uprising" (AK Press, 2026) · June 7, 2026 · 1h 5m