: "At the Crossroads of Desire: A Times Square Centennial" looks
back on how Times Square has evolved over the past century as a
nexus for the real estate, journalism, advertising and
entertainment industries, at the same time that it has served as
a crucible for changing notions of urban planning, morality and
public display - a crossroads of desire in its many forms.
The exhibition is organized chronologically through a series of
six themes that have come to symbolize the history of Times
Square: a century of building and planning; the crowd;
entertaining America; fantasy and desire; signs of the times; and
making news. Despite all of its transformations, these consistent
themes have kept Americans fascinated with Times Square since its
inception.
With each generation building directly atop the one before, only
pieces of what the space once was are left. Included in the
exhibition are the works of many of the great photographers and
filmmakers spanning the past century, who were drawn to the
unique light and social atmosphere that attracted millions in the
same way. Among the photographers featured are William Klein,
Rudy Burckhardt, Weegee and Robert Frank. Images of Hubert's Dime
Museum and Flea Circus on 42 Street, Times Square subway signs
and adult-themed movie posters, postcards of old Broadway also
create a visual reminder of what Times Square was, and what it
has become.
"At the Crossroads" was curated by historian Max Page and
organized by the AXA Gallery in partnership with the Times Square
Alliance.
Page is an associate professor of architecture and history at the
University of Massachusetts in Amherst, where he teaches urban,
architectural and public history. He is author of The Creative
Destruction of Manhattan, 1900-1940 (University of Chicago
Press, 1999), which won the Spiro Kostof Award of the Society of
Architectural Historians for the best book on architecture and
urbanism. Page is also a 2003 Guggenheim Fellow.
"At the Crossroads of Desire: A Times Square Centennial" will be
exhibited December 10 through March 26.
The AXA Gallery is in the atrium lobby of Equitable Tower, 787
Seventh Avenue at 51st Street. Gallery hours are Monday through
Friday, 11 am to 6 pm, and Saturday, noon to 5 pm. For
information, 212-554-2015 or axa-financial.com.
