Hipstomp (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} hipstomp) wrote,@ 2008-03-31 09:00:00 |
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the Reblog 009: Photos of Grand Central's glory days
One of the best scenes in Michael Bay's 1998 actioner Armageddon is New York City's Grand Central Terminal hosting the arrival of a flaming meteor, rather than the 3:12 from Brewster. In the brief pre-disaster establishing shot of the station's interior, done in CG, shafts of sunlight stream through the clerestory windows as they hadn't for decades. In reality the original clerestory design feature had long been upstaged by the many light-blocking skyscrapers erected around Grand Central over the years.
Someone who remembers the original sight is 77-year-old interior designer Boris Klapwald. Half a century ago Klapwald was a Pratt Institute student with a camera, and he took a crapload of photos of Grand Central's interior:
The Times has an article on Klapwald and a slideshow of 14 of his photographs. The rest of his shots can be seen on display at the actual Terminal, in the lower level.
One of the best scenes in Michael Bay's 1998 actioner Armageddon is New York City's Grand Central Terminal hosting the arrival of a flaming meteor, rather than the 3:12 from Brewster. In the brief pre-disaster establishing shot of the station's interior, done in CG, shafts of sunlight stream through the clerestory windows as they hadn't for decades. In reality the original clerestory design feature had long been upstaged by the many light-blocking skyscrapers erected around Grand Central over the years.
Someone who remembers the original sight is 77-year-old interior designer Boris Klapwald. Half a century ago Klapwald was a Pratt Institute student with a camera, and he took a crapload of photos of Grand Central's interior:
"It was a place of contemplation, really--the exact opposite of what it is today," he recalled. "...I liked the quiet of it. It was like a cathedral. You didn't have to pray; you could reflect on yourself."
The Times has an article on Klapwald and a slideshow of 14 of his photographs. The rest of his shots can be seen on display at the actual Terminal, in the lower level.
