Dear Boston Properties,

I have long been fascinated with 601 Lexington Ave, a building your company acquired in 2001. I can’t believe the whole building is lifted and supported by those columns! The 45 degree angle crown also really distinguishes it on the skyline. It’s a very impressive purchase, you must be very proud.

Recently I’ve been playing a game where I think of the midtown skyline as an ensemble and try to determine which building is which high school movie archetype. If Chrysler is the princess and Metlife is the jock, your building would be the cool outcast. Especially because it’s so retro. But does loneliness have to be a quality of the outcast? I ask because I think your building looks a little sad. It looks like it needs a friend, and now that you’ve started renovating your beautiful sunken plaza, I’ve been thinking about some more work your building could benefit from.

Since September I’ve been working on a proposal for an addition to your building. A folly of sorts. Have you ever looked up folly in the dictionary? It is most commonly used as a synonym for foolishness or lack of wisdom, but it has multiple definitions, two of which I find particularly interesting. In theater, folly is a common allegorical figure often portrayed as a jester. Folly is used for insight and advice on the part of the monarch, taking advantage of his license to mock and speak freely to dispense frank observations and highlight the foolishness of their ruler. In architecture, a folly is a costly ornamental building with no practical function, originally made to decorate French and English gardens in the eighteenth century, they were emblems of recreation and foolish luxury.

Although I have very little architectural experience, I’m working with a great team of people designing this addition, among them Robert Henry, Alexandra Tatarsky, Arta Perezic and Steven Andrew Kocher. I wanted to invite you to come consider the proposal, which will be housed at Entrance Gallery at 48 Ludlow St. in New York. We are having a little reception on Sunday, March 25th from 6-9. After that the show will be open until May 6th, Wednesday to Sunday, 12pm-6pm. If you have any questions, give us a call at 646-838-5188. I really hope you can make it and can’t wait to hear your thoughts.

All Best,
Lorenzo Bueno

Exhibition Press

Ravelin Magazine – Claire Christerson’s Conversation With Lorenzo Bueno About His New Show “Pointless.” by Claire Christerson