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| 2001 Designees |
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The
TWA Terminal—John F Kennedy Airport
queens
threat: demolition; inappropriate development
Built 1956-1961 for what was then Idlewild
(now JFK) Airport in Queens, the TWA terminal was one of famed
designer Eero Saarinen’s last works—he died in 1960. The
building’s undulating shape was meant to evoke the excitement
of high speed flight. Its curvilinear forms were used inside and
out—and even the terminal’s smallest interior details,
lounges, chairs, signs, and telephone booths were designed to harmonize
with the curving “gull winged” shell so often depicted
as an emblem of the modern 1960s. When opened, the TWA Terminal
was heralded as a remarkable design achievement, and 40 years later
it continues to be cited by the national and international architectural
community for its importance in the modern design movement. The
terminal building, which is largely intact, is a designated New
York City landmark, a designated City interior landmark, and is
eligible for listing on the State and National Registers of Historic
Places.
In 2000, the property owner, The Port Authority of New York and
New Jersey, announced its intention to carry out a project that
poses serious threats to the architectural integrity of Saarinen’s
modern movement icon. The Port Authority is now seeking the approval
of the Federal Aviation Administration to surround the airside
of the TWA terminal with an enormous, semi-circular new terminal
building; demolish the innovative satellite gates and an unspecified
portion of the tubular jetways; and strip the TWA terminal of its
airline terminal use. With no immediate plans for a new way
to utilize the building, the Port has said it will conduct marketing
studies to determine a new use and hopefully redevelop it.
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