architectural details

After a meeting with a client, I was checking my messages on my crackberry in the building lobby (to avoid the blustering winds outside). And as I stood there, in a typical big 30-floor office building, I slowly realized I was actually standing in a beautiful space. It wasn't a landmark building by any means, or a building that houses a big famous corporation. On the surface view, some people rushed to the elevators and some people came out of the adjacent Starbucks - how much more typical can you get? But if you looked up or down from this, there were these amazing art deco architectural details - golden, angular light fixtures, matching ceiling adornments (30 feet up), vent covers with intricate designs (photo above), and geometric floor tile motifs. There are lots of beautiful buildings in NYC - many being office structures - but this was such a random, pleasant surprise and a reminder that sometimes you have to also look up and down for that special find. Cheers to more unexpected moments...