The historic New York State Pavilion in Queens, designed by Philip Johnson for the 1964-65 World's Fair, was broken into on the weekend of July 19. Vandals set fire to a stolen van, which in turn ignited a tarp covering the pavilion's Terrazzo Map, Inhabitat reports. Vandals also smashed some sections of the map with cinderblock, according to the report.
The 50-year old installation—a detailed 567-panel map of the state of New York—is an original part of the World's Fair grounds at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park.
John Piro, who co-founded the New York State Pavilion Paint Project to bring the pavilion back to its former glory, told the NY Daily News: “It was upsetting after all the work we have been doing. Why would somebody do that?”
There is still broad support for the renovation, encompassing two towers and the Tent of Tomorrow. New York City has pledged $5.8 million to the project, and volunteers are resuming their restoration work and brainstorming security measures.
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Platinum Award: Reviving Oakland's Uptown Showstopper
The story of the Fox Oakland Theater is like that of so many movie palaces of the early 20th century. Built in 1928 based on a Middle Eastern-influenced design by architect Charles Peter Weeks and engineer William Peyton Day, the 3,400-seat cinema flourished until the mid-1960s, when the trend toward smaller multiplex theaters took its toll on the Fox Oakland.