U.N. building

Published on the celebration of the United Nations' sixtieth anniversary. When it was completed in 1952 on a site on New York's East River, the United Nations building stood as a symbol of world humanitarianism, a beacon of unity after the Second World War. One of the most historic commissions of the twentieth century was seen through by architect Wallace Harrison, whose triumph put him on the cover of Time magazine. Today, more than fifty years later, the building is regarded as one of the pinnacles of mid-century modernism. Its magnificent public spaces and assembly halls, as well as its artworks by Picasso, Chagall, and many others, make it one of the most visited sites in New York. This publication presents a portrait of this fascinating building, through specially commissioned photography and illuminating essays that bring alive the historic events, speeches, and gatherings that have been central to the world's development since 1945.