Acconci, Holl Storefront for Art and Architecture

In 1993, the artist Vito Acconci and the architect Steven Holl were invited to redesign the facade of the Storefront for Art and Architecture in New York. Addressing the site's urban environment and its function as an art space--the gallery is located on the ground floor of a low building on the outskirts of Soho--Acconci and Holl created a versatile facade which may be opened up in different ways depending on the season, or function as an optical screen separating the inner space from the street. These diverse functions--responding to considerations of both inner and outer space, creating links and transparencies as well as establishing borders--provide for a constant flux of local and spatial relationships for both the interested viewer and the casual passerby. This striking and significant new book, part of Hatje/Cantz's Werkdokumente series, documents Acconci and Holl's collaborative project with photographs by Paul Ott.