Omer
Office of
ALTERNATIVE INSTITUTIONS
ARCH 3010 | FALL 2019
CHRYSTIE STREET, CHINATOWN
MANHATTAN, NEW YORK
PROF SETH MCDOWELL
This project is an alternative civic institution and photography guild founded on a principle of radical welcome. It serves as a hub for street photographers—providing studios, galleries, and classrooms—while also offering essential public amenities to all, including a bathhouse, community kitchen, and medical clinic. A core mission empowers displaced populations through photography workshops, offering them a medium for self-expression.
The architecture reflects this open ethos, using dynamic, multi-story volumes to create flexible, informal spaces instead of conventional rooms. Sited between Eleanor Roosevelt Park and the Bowery, the building acts as a public conduit, connecting the park, the street, and the metro station below.