Diller Scofidio & Renfro’s Lincoln Center Grassy Remodel Opens To Public

Looking for a bit of green in midtown <a href="http://www.inhabitat.com/nyc">Manhattan</a> this summer? We're happy to say that the second part of <a href="http://www.dsrny.com/" target="new">Diller Scofidio &amp; Renfro</a>'s remodeling of Lincoln Center was recently officially unveiled, and it includes a floating, sloping grass-covered roof atop a new building that will eventually house the <a href="http://www.filmlinc.com/" target="new">Film Society</a> and a high-end restaurant. <em>New York Times</em>' architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/21/arts/design/21lincoln.html" target="new">panned</a> the redesign, but he identified the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/21/arts/design/21lincoln.html">'Illumination lawn</a>' as a high point. And over the past month, the most important critics of all — sun-seeking New Yorkers — were <a href="http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/lawn_ching_high_note_4Ve2Tqd1aCtOnhX1KW5JdJ" target="new">raving</a>.

Lincoln Center and its facelift reflect the place's history: 17 blocks of occupied tenements were torn down to build the altar of high culture in the 1950s.

The original design sheltered the center from its still ostensibly dicey environment.

Ouroussoff faults Diller Scofidio &amp; Renfro for "<em>a surprising insensitivity to the way bodies flow through space</em>" that may simply be the continuation of a problem in the compound's DNA.

The cultural institutions housed in Lincoln Center also failed to agree on a vision for the redesign, limiting <a href="http://inhabitat.com/2010/04/13/nycs-220-million-governors-island-park-unveiled/" target="new">the architects</a> to smallish changes in the plaza spaces and reflecting pool.

The 7,203-square-foot lawn, called the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Lawn, isn't a <a href="http://inhabitat.com/2010/02/01/brooklyn-edible-schoolyard/" target="new">garden</a> for the people — it's an elevated island of turf.

But it will bring in a stream of New Yorkers who might not otherwise patronize Lincoln Center, giving them a rare opportunity to enjoy grass and sun in the concrete jungle.

The lawn curves upward at the edges, allowing climbers a brief moment to forget the city completely.

Green spots allow New Yorkers to forget for a moment that they are in a concrete jungle.

The lawn is a first step towards greener urbanism taking root in the epicenter of Robert Moses's <a href="http://inhabitat.com/2006/04/26/remembering-jane-jacobs/">mid-20th-century vision</a>.

What do you think about the "greening of Lincoln Center"? Let us know in the comments below.

The new lawn is adjacent to a extended reflecting pool and a grove of trees.

Diller Scofidio &amp; Renfro sliced off parts of Alice Tully Hall's facade to give it a more modern look.

New Yorkers can enjoy basking in the sun on the steps on the center or can take refuge in shaded areas.

A serene pool of water lies in the middle of the center's grounds.

The center's new look is futuristic without lacking elegance.

A head-on view of the "sliced" staircases that DSR designed.

The sharp forms reflect the sky when viewed from below.

One of <a href="http://www.dsrny.com/" target="new">Diller Scofidio &amp; Renfro</a>'s renderings depicting their vision for the space.

The new space will be open to the public from 7 a.m. to midnight, April through November.

For more information, check out <a href="http://www.dsrny.com/" target="new">Diller Scofidio &amp; Renfro's website.</a>