On View | Grand Central Sketchbook: Designers Dream

Carol Hsiung

In 2009, we spoke with Vishaan Chakrabarti about Why Grand Central Works. As a building, its halls and pathways are an iconic piece of the city’s built identity — attracting over 20 million visitors annually. As an engineering feat, its design influenced future train stations and airports for generations to come. As a connector, it transformed the region’s built environment and economy. How could one possibly capture this New York City landmark on paper?

In an attempt to do just that, the Architectural League of New York put out a call for sketches and drawings that capture or re-imagine this gateway to the city. Launched in partnership with the New York Transit Museum, the competition commemorated last year’s 100-year anniversary of the building’s opening. The selected winners – included in a special edition Grand Central Terminal Moleskine Sketchbook – use an impressive array of styles and techniques to capture the multiple identities, characters, and aspects of the iconic building. Through December 1st, the winning entries will be exhibited as part of Grand Central Sketchbook: Designers Dream at the New York Transit Museum. Scroll down for more information on the exhibition and check out this League feature to see the winning sketches and read about Grand Central Terminal as a catalyst for creative inspiration and the many ways architects and designers experience and represent place.

Sarah Mark

Grand Central Sketchbook: Designers Dream
On view: June 15 to December 1, 2013
New York Transit Museum
Corner of Boerum Place and Schermerhorn Street
Brooklyn
Tuesday – Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Closed Mondays and major holidays

For more information about visiting, click here.

This exhibition is organized by the New York Transit Museum with work from a competition jointly organized by the Museum and the Architectural League.

Grand Central Terminal has always captured the imagination of artists and architects. To celebrate the Terminal’s Centennial, the Architectural League and the New York Transit Museum hosted a drawing competition for architects and designers to capture or re-imagine the New York City landmark. Twenty winners (from 109 entries) were featured in a special edition Moleskine sketchbook–available at Transit Museum Stores–and are now on view in this exhibition. The drawings, ranging from the whimsical to the diagrammatic, from charcoal sketches to computer-generated fantasies, form a collective portrait of this New York icon.

For more information on the competition and the winning work, click here.