En este libro; el autor aborda el movimiento; el arte; la magia. El autor-protagonista va registrando sus experiencias existenciales y uacute;nicas; seguacute;n dice; capaces de afectar nuestras vidas desde el momento en que se viven en adelante. El libro recoge anaacute;lisis criacute;ticos; pero tambieacute;n historias de amor. En su curioso aacute;mbito; el arte brota en medio de la vida y la vida en medio del arte y los ensayos estudian mdash;a la vez que celebranmdash; el mundo de las imaacute;genes; sea que aparezcan en la pantalla; en la paacute;gina; en el escenario; en el lienzo; en un aacute;lbum; aun en los viajes y en las calles de todos los diacute;as. Son incitaciones a mirar el mundo con intensidad. La mayoriacute;a de los textos recogidos han sido publicados de manera dispersa en revistas de coyuntura; arte y criacute;tica cultural en diversas eacute;pocas. Los textos dedicados a la muacute;sica; refiere el propio Huayhuaca; son comentarios breves escritos hacia 1978 a pedido de una amiga a quien regaloacute; un cassette con sus piezas predilectas.
2015-01-20 2015-01-20File Name: B00SIMWQMM
Review
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. A brilliant discourse in the guise of a lower Manhattan walkBy Sitting in SeattleThis is one of the most fascinating books Ive read recently. Im a layperson in this field; but if you live or spend much time in New York; and are interested in urban environments; its a must read. And even if NYC is foreign to you; its a great book about cities and how they work on a block-by-block; building-by-building; person-by-person level.Sorkin is an architect; urban designer; and professor at the City University of New York. Hes well known both as a designer and as an architecture critic. Twenty Minutes in Manhattan uses the route of his walk from home in Greenwich Village to his studio in Tribeca as a foil to talk about New York City; about architecture as a human enterprise; and about the state of our cities and ourselves as social beings. The book alternates brilliantly from close attention to details -- stairs; windows; shops; airplane bathrooms; someone appearing to run from a policeman -- to discussion of how the design of cities reflects political structures and in return alters politics and participation.Sorkin writes from a left-wing perspective and is a mostly unabashed critic of money and power. I say "mostly" because he is also clearly aware of the fact that better design costs money; and creates neighborhoods (like SoHo; Tribeca; and increasingly the Village itself) where people with money are drawn and push others out. He not prescribe answers but seems to hope instead to increase our awareness and attention. It is almost a modern coda to Jane Jacobs (The Death and Life of Great American Cities); whom he admires and discusses throughout.As I read it; I found myself drawn more and more to look at buildings; at stoops; at railings; at intersections; and yes; even at the other people on the sidewalk around the city. I hope it helps you do the same.4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. The Dangers of ImprovementBy Rocco DormarunnoAlthough I have been a Brooklynite all my life; my father had a lot of family on Sullivan; Thompson and Spring Streets that we would visit; and; like Michael Sorkin; I have worked in Tribeca since the 80s. And like any other citizen of an "outer borough"; I spent many a weekend frequenting the clubs and pubs and sights of The Village. So I am very familiar with the neighborhoods that Michael Sorkin examines in his wonderful and painful book "Twenty Minutes in Mannhattan". Its wonderful in its examination and confirmation of the structures and people of those places that are so dear to me; painful in its alarm that they may all vanish; if they havent already; all under the name of improvement.My fellow New Yorkers often gripe about the "Disneyfication" of Times Square; how the area has lost its character. I often take this opinion to task. I tell them its just nostalgia for their youth that they actually miss. Can they honestly tell me that they mourn the loss of the junkies; muggers; and prostitutes that harrassed or even threatened them as they walked from their offices to the Port Authority or the Times Square subway station? While I am not thrilled about the development of 42nd Street; it is an actual improvement.But the neighborhoods; buildings and lifestyles that Sorkin describes was never as bad as Time Square. While they had their seedier sides; the Village; SoHo and Tribeca were never as crime-infested as Hells Kitchen and Times Square had been. These "improvements" downtown were unnecessary; intrusive and downright destructive. And Sorkin; like many other New Yorkers; worry about these changes; the obvious catering to real estate developers; and the boring; boring; boring effects of globalizing places that are fiercely loyal to their uniqueness. Sorkin is quite justified in mourning the loss of the Jane Jacobses of this City. Enough of my pontificating.The book itself is what I expected from Michael Sorkin. The analyses are supported by facts; the opinions are justified by well-reasoned logic; and the style ranges from near-tragic mourning to laugh-out-loud wit. The final sections; especially where he stumbles upon a movie set or two and when he encounters the ubiquitous stroller-pushing yuppies; are brilliantly funny.This is no easy book to read; and I will not claim to have understood all of the architectural; sociological aspects of it. In this regard; I am reminded of Mark Kingwells Nearest Thing to Heaven: The Empire State Building and American Dreams (Icons of America); also a serious investigation of the architectural; social and cultural significance of what people think about when they think about New York City. It is also a book that I cannot claim to fully grasp. No matter. What I did understand of Sorkins "Twenty Minutes in Manhattan" was fascinating and hard to argue with. Sorkin is reminding us that we must remain vigilant to the changes; the "rehabilitating"; the "improvements" being made to these--and other--neighborhoods of New York. Improvement can be deadly.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. A Magical Fulfillment of Its PremiseBy Dmitry PortnoyMany architecture books are towering achievements. This one sticks close to street level and delivers exactly the experience it promises: going on a walk through Greenwich Village; Soho; and Tribeca with an architect who talks about the things around you; his personal experience; and their history. If this is your idea of a good time (and wow; is it mine) buy this book. Read it as I did on a Kindle; while taking a walk. It is sweet.Sorkin digresses constantly into discussions that can get abstract; and he does not keep a secret of his politics. But he never repeats himself. This book only feels casual and rambling (like going on a stroll.) Its actually carefully planned and artfully constructed (like something by an architect.) The reader might think Sorkin is only chatting on his way to work; but Sorkin got there way ahead of you; and has sweated over these pages until they felt inspired; and improvised.Like a pleasant stroll; this book is full of views. Sorkins are fair and encyclopedically informed. He sharply critiques the mistakes of Corbusier and fellow modernists; but makes you understand their motivations and ambitions. He juxtaposes Jane Jacobs and Robert Moses as antagonists but not opposites; with complex and sometimes mirrored legacies. He even-handedly spreads blame among landlords and tenants; developers and activists; regulators and entrepreneurs. (Thats actually not quite true; but he presents them all as recognizable and rounded human beings.) His proposals at first seem outlandish but then weirdly make sense. He is often very; very funny.I liked this book more and more as I kept reading it; and like it even more as I look back. Like a great walk; it is too short.
