All articles by Diane Pham

Diane is the founder and Editorial Director of 6sqft. After graduating from the University of Southern California with a B.S. in Real Estate Finance & Development and a minor in Architecture, she enjoyed stints at SCI-Arc, the A+D Museum Los Angeles, Perkins Eastman Architects and Resolution 4: Architecture. She also previously served as Senior Editor of Inhabitat.com and spent several years as an analyst at CB Richard Ellis Investments in Milan, Italy.

My 408sqft: A Tudor City historian lives maximally in a micro-studio using furniture on wheels

6sqft’s ongoing series “My sqft” checks out the homes of New Yorkers across all the boroughs. Our latest interior adventure brings us to the Tudor City studio of Brian Thompson. Want to see your home featured here? Get in touch!

June 19, 2017

My 408sqft: A Tudor City historian lives maximally in a micro-studio using furniture on wheels

By Diane Pham

We've seen many solutions for tiny living employed here at 6sqft, from transforming furniture to elaborate built-ins to adding color and patterns to trick the eye, but as far as living minimally has gone, we're not sure if we've seen a home opt for such a straightforward—but artful—setup. Located in the quaint and picturesque neighborhood of Tudor City is the 408-square-foot apartment of historian, activist, and real estate broker Brian Thompson. Rather than outfitting his apartment with built-in seating or complex hidden furniture (though he does have a Murphy bed), Brian has opted for an ultra-minimal setup that includes just three pieces of furniture: a couch, a bookshelf, and a desk—all of which can be arranged into an infinite number of livable layouts with just a simple push or a pull.
See more inside Brian's incredible tiny home

June 13, 2017

Be my roommate: Live in a Cobble Hill apartment steps from transit and Trader Joe’s for $1400

By Diane Pham

To help our fellow New Yorkers on their hunt for a good roommate, we present "Be My Roommate." If you have an empty room you'd like to see featured here, get in touch with us at [email protected]! Meet Marie, a laid-back bookworm searching for a roommate for her Cobble Hill two-bedroom. Marie, a Florida native, moved to the neighborhood just over four years ago after a spending several years in Chicago and more than a year living out of a backpack in Central America. Up until a week ago, she shared her Brooklyn apartment with a friend who has since flown the coop to teach in Paris. This has left Marie with an extra bedroom, and for anyone looking for new digs, a great opportunity to live in one of the city's best neighborhoods.
Find out more here, plus pics!

Where I Work

June 7, 2017

A tribute to Frank Lloyd Wright’s built, unbuilt, and demolished New York works

By Diane Pham

For many, Frank Lloyd Wright is considered the archetype of his profession; he was brash and unapologetic about his ideas, he experimented and tested the limits of materiality and construction, and he was never afraid to put clients in their place when they were wrong. It was this unwavering confidence paired with a brilliant creative mind that made him one of the greatest American architects to ever live. And one of the most influential. This week Wright would have turned 150 years old, so to celebrate his birthday and his importance to the practice of modern architecture, we're paying tribute to the architect's built, destroyed, and never-constructed New York works. Amazingly, of the more than 500 structures credited with his name, he can only claim one in Manhattan.
Here's our tribute to the great American architect

June 7, 2017

Join the New York Times Cities for Tomorrow conference, July 10-11!

By Diane Pham

How do the greatest cities succeed? Find out on July 10–11 when The New York Times convenes the world’s foremost industry experts, policymakers, developers, creative visionaries, entrepreneurs and others at Cities for Tomorrow, the must-attend event for leaders who are shaping the urban environments of the future. 6sqft readers will receive a special 20% discount for the conference.
full details here

June 6, 2017

Is the C train the root of the NYC’s subway problems?

By Diane Pham

There's plenty of blame to go around when it comes to the chronic failures of the NYC subway system, from the lack of funds to the lack of leadership. But now the latest piece of the MTA to get finger wag is not a person or a line in the budget, but the system's C line. As the Times reports, C trains, the oldest and most break down-prone cars in the system, can many times be traced back to as the cause of system-wide failures. Breaking down roughly every 33,527 miles—as opposed to 400,000 miles for the average car, or 700,000 miles for new cars—when C line cars see delays, pangs can be felt throughout the entire network, making everyone's commute increasingly miserable.
so what's being done?

Transit

My 600sqft: Pastry chef Meredith Kurtzman in her colorful Soho apartment of 40 years

6sqft’s ongoing series “My sqft” checks out the homes of New Yorkers across all the boroughs. Our latest interior adventure brings us to the Soho apartment of pastry chef Meredith Kurtzman. Want to see your home featured here? Get in touch!

June 5, 2017

My 600sqft: Pastry chef Meredith Kurtzman in her colorful Soho apartment of 40 years

By Diane Pham

You may not know Meredith Kurtzman by name, but you can thank this spunky New Yorker for bringing great gelato to the city. A textile designer turned pastry chef, Kurtzman is lauded (at least within her industry) as "a trailblazer" in elevating ice-cream making in the U.S. Moreover she's wholly credited with introducing chaste New York palettes to once implausible flavors like olive oil gelato and, more simply, fresh fruit sorbetto; "genius" and "a true artisan" are just a few of words that have been used to describe her. However, while counterparts with her level of talent have catapulted themselves into the spotlight (see: Keith McNally and Bobby Flay), Meredith herself has opted for a more understated existence. She today—as she has for the last 40 years—lives in a modestly-sized but boldly colorful tenement apartment in Soho. Meredith is, in fact, one of those rare New York creatives whose real estate choices can be traced back to when Soho was a "last resort" for artists and storefronts were used as shelter. Stating the obvious, she's seen some things. Ahead, Meredith offers us a tour of her unique apartment, a 600-square-foot space filled with DIY projects, vintage charm, plants, and lots of color. She also shares stories of Soho in the 1970s, and where she still finds inspiration in a city that's so different from the one she knew as a youth.
inside meredith's apartment here

June 2, 2017

The Urban Lens: 1940-50s Coney Island through the eyes of teenager Harold Feinstein

By Diane Pham

Born and raised in Coney Island, there was never a photographer better primed to capture the neighborhood's vibrancy than Harold Feinstein. "I like to think I fell out of the womb on to the fun park’s giant Parachute Jump while eating a Nathan’s hot dog," he told The Guardian in 2014, just before his passing in 2015. Indeed, Feinstein would take his first photo (using a Rolleiflex borrowed from a neighbor) at age 15 in 1946, beginning what would become an unwavering love affair with documenting the whizz, whirl and insatiable life that permeated his beachside locale. Although Feinstein would eventually move on to other subjects in various parts of New York City and the globe, over his nearly 70-year career he would always return to Coney Island for inspiration. "Coney Island was my Treasure Island," he said. Feinstein's Coney Island photos cover more than five decades, but ultimately his 1940s and 1950s snapshots--those taken when he was just a teenager--would cement his status as one of the most important photographers recording life in post-war America. Ahead, the Harold Feinstein Photography Trust shares highlights from this collection.
see the photos here

June 1, 2017

Gloria Steinem scoops up another floor in her Upper East Side brownstone for $1.1M

By Diane Pham

Trailblazer and feminist icon Gloria Steinem appears to be expanding her Upper East Side digs. The Post reports that Steinem has just purchased a $1.1M floor-through on the third floor of 118 East 73rd Street, a brownstone where according to property records—and this Oprah video—she already owns two floors.
see more inside here

May 31, 2017

Cuomo approves New York’s first application to test driverless cars on public roads

By Diane Pham

Governor Cuomo continues his push to improve and modernize transit across the state, announcing today that the first application for an autonomous vehicle demonstration on New York public roads has been approved. As shared in a press release, Audi of America Inc. was given the green light and will begin demonstrations this summer. The upcoming tests will be the first ever made in New York history and will be conducted on roads near the state capital, Albany.
more details here

Transit

May 23, 2017

The ‘map distance’ vs. the ‘geographic distance’ of the NYC subway

By Diane Pham

The NYC subway map tidily lays out over 665 miles of track and 472 stations into a simple, easy-to-read design. While the map gives the impression that our fair city's transit system is orderly and evenly spaced, as any true straphanger will tell you, that's not the reality. Indeed, those colorful lines and nodes have been placed for maximum legibility, simply showing geographical approximations that often don't even kind of match up with real life (as this man will tell you). Now, one redditor brings us an entrancing new animation that removes the MTA's distortion, giving us a look at the real distance that exists between stations and lines.
mor here

Transit

Watch Herzog & de Meuron’s ‘Jenga Tower’ rise in 60 seconds

By Diane Pham

56 Leonard is one of NYC's most exciting recent architectural additions. Dreamt up by Herzog & de Meuron, the skyline-altering condo tower rises 57 stories with an undeniable acrobatic grace, carefully staggering its floors in a cantilevering Jenga-like configuration that also appears to be in perfect equilibrium. Although the project developed by the Alexico Group and Hines took nearly a decade to build, a new video (h/t The Real Deal) released by the developers fast tracks the long and arduous process, neatly wrapping up 10 years of work into just over 60 seconds.
see the full timelapse here

May 2, 2017

EVENT: Learn about the history of Tudor City, its micro-apartments, and its struggle to save its parks

By Diane Pham

Can you locate Tudor City on a map? Did you know it was a development used to clear out undesirable slums along the waterfront? Have you heard it contains more than 2,200 apartments smaller than 400 square feet—"the antique mother load of micro-living"? As far as New York City's hidden gems go, Tudor City is a neighborhood that is often overlooked. But if you're one who is interested in history, architecture, urban design, or all of the above, this verdant east side enclave is one that deserves at least an hour or two of exploration. On May 5th, 6th and 7th you'll get a chance delve deep into the history of this incredible 11-building development, as local historian and activist Brian K. Thompson leads several free public tours through early 20th-century development.
more details here

My 850sqft: DJ and influencer Isaac Hindin-Miller opts for Mid-Century modern in his Alphabet City home

6sqft’s ongoing series “My sqft” checks out the homes of New Yorkers across all the boroughs. Our latest interior adventure brings us to the Alphabet City apartment of style blogger and DJ Isaac Hindin-Miller. Want to see your home featured here? Get in touch!

May 2, 2017

My 850sqft: DJ and influencer Isaac Hindin-Miller opts for Mid-Century modern in his Alphabet City home

By Diane Pham

For DJ and influencer Isaac Hindin-Miller, style comes easy. The native New Zealander has been a fixture in the fashion world for nearly a decade, working for top menswear brands and writing for publications like the Business of Fashion, Man Repeller, and GQ. Unsurprisingly, his success has brought him to every corner of the world, and his day-to-day is one that most of us can only dream of. But while Isaac's life has revolved around all that is beautiful, it wasn't until a couple of years ago that his style started to carry over into his home. In 2015, Isaac's roommate left their apartment in Alphabet City, and instead of hunting for another body to fill the space, he jumped on the opportunity to turn the two-bedroom into an Instagram-ready home. Ahead, tour his once uninspiring 850-square-foot apartment, now a bright and airy top-floor escape outfitted with soft-hued Mid-century modern furniture, framed art, and lots of plants!
more inside Isaac's apartment here

Waitlist reopens for affordable apartments at two rentals near Lincoln Center, from $613/month

One Columbus Place via Brodsky

April 28, 2017

Waitlist reopens for affordable apartments at two rentals near Lincoln Center, from $613/month

By Diane Pham

One Columbus Place via Brodsky Qualifying New Yorkers aching to be in the thick of the city's performing arts scene now have an opportunity to join the waitlist for two Midtown West rental towers: One Columbus Place and 55-75 West End Avenue. The NYCHDC is currently accepting applications for studio and one-bedrooms priced at $613 and $659, respectively. The towers, both developed by the Brodsky Organization in the mid-90s, boast not only a fantastic location close to Columbus Circle, Central Park, and Lincoln Center, but also come with great perks like roof decks, swimming pools, laundry facilities, gyms, and concierge and doorman service.
find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

April 27, 2017

Park Slope townhouse Barack Obama once called home asks $4.3M

By Diane Pham

Before meeting Michelle, but after escaping his cramped rental on West 109th Street, President Barack Obama called this Park Slope brownstone home. Obama occupied the top floor of the three-story house with his then-girlfriend during the '80s, moving in shortly after he graduated from Columbia University. While the home was at the time split up into various rental apartments, in 1994, its new owners turned it into a single-family home. Now, as The Real Deal reports, the five-bedroom beauty has just listed for $4.295 million, up for sale for the first time in 23 years.
see inside here

April 27, 2017

Tiny MUJI Hut offers a stylish and inexpensive option for homeowners who want another room

By Diane Pham

It's been about a year and a half since MUJI first announced their MUJI Hut, a modern prefab take on the micro-home. Costing $27,000, it's a well-priced housing option for those with land—and it's finally hit the market. Although the price tag may still be out of reach for most New Yorkers, those blessed with a backyard and some extra cash can easily turn this hut into a stylish extra room or office. That's right, at just 97 square feet this little guy appears to skirt the need for a building permit, keeping well below the 121 square feet that would require plans, approval, and tedious visits to the Department of Buildings.
more details on the design

April 21, 2017

The Urban Lens: Explore the whimsical photography of Todd Webb with former LIFE editor Bill Shapiro

By Diane Pham

"I instantly fell in love with Webb’s work," says former LIFE editor-in-chief Bill Shapiro, "with the beauty he captures, with his sense of the life of the street; with the way he frames both the sweeping, iconic skyline and those small, fleeting moments that define the city that New Yorkers love." These sentiments seem to be shared by just about everyone who encounters the work of Todd Webb for the first time. Webb, most fittingly described by Shapiro as "the best NYC photographer you've never heard of," worked and laughed alongside photography's upper echelon, including Georgia O’Keeffe, Walker Evan, Gordon Parks and Ansel Adams, but unlike his well-known friends, Webb was never interested fame. Instead, he quietly took to documenting life in America, particularly post-war New York between 1946 and 1960.
more on the work of todd webb here

April 20, 2017

Midtown’s 1,401-foot One Vanderbilt to begin vertical construction next month

By Diane Pham

One of the city's most pivotal new office towers is approaching its latest milestone. This afternoon, developer SL Green announced that One Vanderbilt, the supertall currently under construction directly adjacent to Grand Central Terminal, will begin its vertical ascent in early May. According to a press release, the 1,401-foot skyscraper's construction manager, AECOM Tishman, has secured the procurement of more than 25,000 tons of domestically-fabricated structural steel, in addition to a New Building Permit from the New York City Department of Buildings.
more details here

My 900sqft: A podcasting pioneer fills her family’s West Village apartment with historic American relics

6sqft’s ongoing series “My sqft” checks out the homes of New Yorkers across all the boroughs. Our latest interior adventure brings us to the West Village apartment of podcasting pioneer and DJ Suzy Chase. Want to see your home featured here? Get in touch!

April 18, 2017

My 900sqft: A podcasting pioneer fills her family’s West Village apartment with historic American relics

By Diane Pham

Years ago, when Suzy Chase was presented with the opportunity to bring every piece of furniture from her childhood Kansas home to NYC, there was no question of what she'd take, but rather how she'd take it all with her. Steeped in a bounty of antiques and heirlooms, Suzy knew she could never part with the items that she loved so much growing up. So rather than putting it all into storage, she made the decision to clear out her family's 900-square-foot West Village apartment and fill it with as much of her Kansas furniture as possible. While many of you are probably asking why she didn't consider selling or donating these items, there is, of course, a twist to this story, and her situation is one that is quite unique: She's a descendant of the Chase family, one of the United States' most important political families. Ahead, have a look inside Suzy's home, a modestly sized two-bedroom filled with relics from the Revolutionary and Civil wars, centuries-old paintings, rare books and photographs, and countless other objects that were on American soil well before the Mayflower even touched Plymouth Rock.
see more inside here

April 18, 2017

Apply for an affordable apartment at Chelsea Centro, two-bedrooms priced at $1,574/month

By Diane Pham

TF Cornerstone is once again accepting applications for affordable studio, one- and two-bedroom units at their very well located Chelsea Centro rental at 200-220 West 26th Street. The full-time doorman building was erected in 2001 and boasts an 80/20 mix of low-income and market-rate units. As noted by the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development, TF will be accepting applications from qualifying individuals and families until all the building's affordable vacancies have been filled and its waiting list replenished. The current units up for grabs range from $1,215 per month for a studio up to $1,574 per month for a comfortable two-bedroom spread.
find out if you qualify here

Affordable Housing

My 1400sqft: Inside creative couple Molly Young and Teddy Blanks’ perfectly outfitted Williamsburg loft

Our ongoing series “My sqft” checks out the homes of 6sqft’s friends, family and fellow New Yorkers across all the boroughs. Our latest interior adventure brings us to the Williamsburg loft of Molly Young and Teddy Blanks. Want to see your home featured here? Get in touch!

April 12, 2017

My 1400sqft: Inside creative couple Molly Young and Teddy Blanks’ perfectly outfitted Williamsburg loft

By Diane Pham

Melding belongings is often a struggle for couples who take the leap and move in together. Many fear that their individuality will be lost to their partner’s vision, personal items packed away because there’s “just not enough room.” But for Molly Young, a New York Times Magazine contributor and crossword puzzle creator, and Teddy Blanks, a graphic designer and director, checking one’s ego and a co-regent rule are key to creativity and authenticity in the home. In this week's My sqft, Molly and Teddy bring us into their incredible 1400-square-foot loft, a hidden gem situated within an innocuous factory building along an even more innocuous Williamsburg street. Filled with color, whimsical artwork, and quirky objects procured everywhere from eBay to Etsy to a failed Sotheby's auction, this pair's apartment reveals that cohabitation can and should be a co-creative adventure that both inspires and amuses.
go inside molly and teddy's home

April 5, 2017

Robert A.M. Stern will lead the transformation of the historic Belnord into condos

By Diane Pham

The conversion of the historic Belnord into luxury condominiums is moving forward, with the property expected to be brought to market as early as the third quarter of the year. This morning, HFZ Capital announced they have tapped starchitect Robert A.M. Stern to helm the transformation, which would turn approximately 95 rental apartments in the full-block, 1908 building at 225 West 86th Street into fully converted and reimagined apartments. In all, the limestone-and-brick structure currently maintains 213 rental units.
more details here

March 17, 2017

The Urban Lens: Enter the vibrant world of New York City’s Sherpa community

By Diane Pham

6sqft’s ongoing series The Urban Lens invites photographers to share work exploring a theme or a place within New York City. In this installment, Leandro Viana presents his 'Sherpas' project, a series centered on the Sherpa community of Elmhurst, Queens. Are you a photographer who’d like to see your work featured on The Urban Lens? Get in touch with us at [email protected]. Queens is the second-most populous borough in New York City with well over two million inhabitants. Queens is also New York City's most diverse borough, boasting a population that is nearly 50 percent foreign-born with individuals hailing from over 100 different countries. In all, there are around 500 different languages spoken, some of which can be traced back to the most remote corners of the world. And within this cornucopia of culture are the Sherpa people. While the word Sherpa for many will recall scenes of mountaineers scaling the snowy peaks of the Himalayas, in recent years, more and more Sherpas have planted their flags in the much more level neighborhood of Elmhurst, Queens. Indeed, today there are nearly 3,000 Sherpas living in New York City, making for the largest population outside of South Asia. Ahead, Brooklyn photographer Leandro Viana shares his series documenting this unique group in their new land, spotlighting their efforts to preserve their language, religion, culture, and arts so far from home.
See more from Leandro's series here

Places

March 10, 2017

How to get a tree planted on your block – for free

By Diane Pham

In 2007, officials launched MillionTreesNYC, an initiative with the aim of greening New York City through the planting and care of one million trees. While the city surpassed its goal in 2015, planting 1,017,634 trees by the year's end, efforts to increase leafy canopy coverage across the five boroughs has not wavered since. With that said, if you're a New Yorker who feels that your street could use a bit more greenery (ahem, Sean Lennon), getting a tree planted on your block is much easier than you may think. By simply filling out a request with the New York Parks Department, you can get a tree planted, for free, so long as the plot you have in mind is suitable for planting.
find out more details here

All articles by Diane Pham

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