An illustrated tour through New York’s five boroughs and the past 100 years of its modern architecture, told through the charming yet bold drawings of Lukas Novotny.


Modern New York: The Illustrated Story of Architecture in the Five Boroughs from 1920 to Today takes the reader on a roller-coaster ride through the changing fortunes of New York City throughout the last hundred years, from the heights of the Roaring Twenties and “Mad Men” Fifties, to the depths of the Great Depression Thirties, through to “Fear City” in the Seventies, and beyond. Many of the featured buildings won’t be found in city guides and some of them are no longer around—but each one played an integral part in the fascinating story of the five boroughs.

The ten decades are explored through some 150 buildings in all corners of the city, from Rockefeller Center to the Pan Am Building to the Standard Hotel, as well as treasures lost, such as the 1927 Savoy-Plaza Hotel, and treasures rescued, such as the astonishingly glamourous 1924 American Radiator Building, now the Bryant Park Hotel. New York City has been described from every possible angle through thousands of books. But not many of them venture out of Manhattan, let alone visit all five boroughs. Out of these, only a handful is accessible to non-experts and fewer still are entertaining and illustrated. And none of them offer such a crisp and visually unified picture of the Big Apple.

In stock

SKU 2-1525

Description / Modern New York: The Illustrated Story of Architecture in the Five Boroughs from 1920 to Present

An illustrated tour through New York’s five boroughs and the past 100 years of its modern architecture, told through the charming yet bold drawings of Lukas Novotny.


Modern New York: The Illustrated Story of Architecture in the Five Boroughs from 1920 to Today takes the reader on a roller-coaster ride through the changing fortunes of New York City throughout the last hundred years, from the heights of the Roaring Twenties and “Mad Men” Fifties, to the depths of the Great Depression Thirties, through to “Fear City” in the Seventies, and beyond. Many of the featured buildings won’t be found in city guides and some of them are no longer around—but each one played an integral part in the fascinating story of the five boroughs.

The ten decades are explored through some 150 buildings in all corners of the city, from Rockefeller Center to the Pan Am Building to the Standard Hotel, as well as treasures lost, such as the 1927 Savoy-Plaza Hotel, and treasures rescued, such as the astonishingly glamourous 1924 American Radiator Building, now the Bryant Park Hotel. New York City has been described from every possible angle through thousands of books. But not many of them venture out of Manhattan, let alone visit all five boroughs. Out of these, only a handful is accessible to non-experts and fewer still are entertaining and illustrated. And none of them offer such a crisp and visually unified picture of the Big Apple.

We found other products you might like!

Navigating through the elements of the carousel is possible using the tab key. You can skip the carousel or go straight to carousel navigation using the skip links.
Subway Logo S Train Ornament
$17.95
NYC Subway #E Train Teddy Bear
$9.99
Wood NameTrains Stork Baby
Special Price $3.38 Regular Price $6.75
Kids Tee 4 Train (Brooklyn to Bronx)
As low as $21.00
NYC Bus Spinner Keyring
$4.99
NYC Transit Youth Tee
As low as $27.00
Color Change Butter Dough
$6.75
NYC Subway #G Train Teddy Bear
$9.99
Subway Map Automatic-Open Umbrella
$24.00
Brooklyn Battery Tunnel Magnet
$3.00
Frequently bought together
Kids Subway Map Face Mask
Special Price $5.00 Regular Price $9.50
Vignelli Diagram Manhattan Latte Mug
$13.95
Metro-North Railroad PotHolder
$5.95
2005 HAND - MTA Arts & Design Art Card
$25.00
NYC Subway Wooden RedBird (R33ML)
$17.95
Sweatshirt Subway Map
As low as $29.95
NYC Subway #1 Train Teddy Bear
$9.99
Kids Tee Q Train (Coney Island to 2nd Av)
As low as $21.00
NYC Subway Map Apron
$24.95
White Vignelli Brooklyn Magnet
$4.00