High Line: The Inside Story

The road to creating one of New York's most beloved parks was sometimes just as tough as the unruly terrain that Friends of the High Line co-founders Joshua David and Robert Hammond were determined to transform. Stretching from the Meatpacking District to West 34th Street, the mile-and-a-half-long elevated park represents the extraordinary rescue of an abandoned eyesore by two inexperienced but dedicated individuals, and the rally of strong community involvement. A new book, "High Line: The Inside Story of New York City's Park in the Sky," chronicles the behind-the-scenes of the epic ten-year restoration project.

In overcoming all the adversity which faced them, David and Hammond have created a park that stands for so much more than a respite from the urban jungle. Today, the High Line is home to more than 200 species of grasses, wildflowers, shrubs and trees, hosts more than 300 public programs each year, from stargazing sessions to yoga classes, provides a setting for site-specific art installations and receives at times 100,000 visitors in a single weekend.

With the forthcoming relocation of the Whitney Museum to the park's southern terminus and the adjacent Hudson Yards development on the horizon, the High Line engages with an important area of NYC's rapidly evolving urban environment. "High Line" is a thorough and enlightening read for any park enthusiast or 'yet-to-be-known-nobody' seeking a little inspiration. Hammond sums up the project quite simply in the book - "I hope the High Line will encourage people to pursue all sorts of crazy projects, even if they seem, as the High Line once did, the most unlikely of dreams."

To find out where you can purchase High Line: The Inside Story of New York City's Park in the Sky or to find out more, visit Cool Hunting.

Bethnal Green Town Hall Hotel

Combining careful restoration and computer led parametric design, the Bethnal Green Town Hall Hotel looks set to open its doors to the public this November. Led by the design team at rare architecture the aluminium skinned extension to this historic building may polarise opinions but its use of digital is, at the very least, intriguing.

The patterning in this aluminium skin varies according to what is situated behind it; opaque when covering bare walls and perforated where let needs to be let in. This pioneering use of computer modelling has led the project to be used as a teaching case study at the AA, whilst the digitally crafted wall panels within the buildings interior formed part of the furniture range showcased by rare at the London Design Festival.

For a further insight into this innovative building visit Blueprint Magazine.