Tours Details
Date: 11/2, 11/9, 11/16, 11/23, 11/30
Start time: 2pm EST
Duration: 2 hours (~30min walking)
Meeting Point: Borough Hall
End Point: Barkleys Center
Participants limit: 10
Downtown Brooklyn from Historical to Contemporary Art and Architecture Tour
Brooklyn, the City’s most populous borough, has a development history that began with the founding of villages by the Dutch in the 17th century. It is home to a range of residential, commercial, and industrial neighborhoods, ranging from the iconic brownstones to the skyscrapers of downtown Brooklyn. Downtown Brooklyn is layered with architectural history from 18th to 21st centuries, making it one of Brooklyn’s most dynamic neighborhoods. A single block can span the distance between the years before the Civil War up until the present. We will discover Brooklyn’s rich array of historic architecture, a visual narrative of the borough’s past and how that visual history harmoniously blends with the innovative and exquisite contemporary architecture. Downtown Brooklyn’s architecture is a “living” testament to Brooklyn’s vibrant past and its ever-unfolding future. The standard tour covers a leisurely 1-2 mile-long route in the Brooklyn downtown area as well as the nearby picturesque streets adorned with charming 19th-century brownstones, each radiating a unique historical allure.
Some of the Architecture Featured on this Tour
Brooklyn Borough Hall, Gamaliel King, 1848
Offerman Building, Peter J. Lauritzen, 1893
Dime Savings Bank of Brooklyn, Mowbray and Uffinger, 1908
One Willoughby Square, FXCollaborative, 2021
City Point, CookFox Architects, 2015 (Phase 1), 2016
Avalon Willoughby West, Perkins Eastman, 2016
9 DeKalb Avenue (Brooklyn Tower), SHoP Architects, 2023
The Hub (333 Schermerhorn Street), Dattner Architects, 2017
The Ashland Tower, FXCollaborative, 2016
300 Ashland Place, TEN Arquitectos, 2016)
Barclays Center, SHoP Architects, 2012
Pacific Park Brooklyn (formerly Atlantic Yards), Various Architects (including SHoP Architects, CookFox, and KPF), 2012
Williamsburgh Savings Bank Tower, Halsey, McCormack & Helmer, 1929
Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM), Herts & Tallant, 1908
Extended tour:
Brooklyn Law School (One Boerum Place), Emery Roth & Sons, 1970
New York Transit Museum, William Jerome, 1936
The Polhemus Building, Marshall Emery, 1897
The Edge Building, TEN Arquitectos, 2009
One Clinton, Marvel Architects, 2020
Languages
Public tours are in English. Private tours are available in English, Spanish, Italian, French, Russian, Bulgarian, Catalan, Urdu, Hindi and Japanese.
Barkleys Center
Brooklyn Borough Hall
Your PhD Architect Guides
Dr. Afshan Bokhari grew up in Queens, NY and is a New York based art and architectural historian with more than 15 years of experience across the private, public, and academic sectors. She is a member of Build World and Build Academy, organizations dedicated to providing professional solutions and education for the built environment.
Afshan combines her experience of teaching art and architectural history with her passion for discovering and sharing the history and secrets of her hometown. Her fun and enlightening tours not only consider the architecture but also any sculptural details on the building. She reveals the hidden urban gems along the way and creates a unique and not boilerplate understanding of New York City’s history and its built environment. Afshan encourages questions and thoughtfully answers queries. She makes sure to cultivate a compelling and creative “lens” for the guests to use after the tour to gain a deeper understanding of the greatest city in the world.
Afshan is a licensed NYC tour guide and fluent in Urdu, Hindi and functional Japanese.
Ivan R. Shumkov, PhD
Dr. Ivan Shumkov is a New York based architect, urban planner, entrepreneur, and professor with more than 20 years of experience across the private, public, and academic sectors. He is the founder of Build World and Build Academy, organizations dedicated to providing professional solutions and education for the built environment.
Ivan combines his experience of practicing and teaching architecture with his passion for discovering and sharing the history and secrets of New York. His tours provoke curiosity, show hidden urban gems, and provide opportunities for experiencing and understanding art and architecture in a unique way. He helps his guests to see and connect the city through the eyes of an architect. They are activated and transformed by these immersive experiences and view the city in a new way.
Ivan is a licensed NYC tour guide. Being fluent in multiple languages, he can conduct tours in English, Spanish, Catalan, Bulgarian, French and Italian.
Public Walking Tour
You’ll expperience NY with a small group of up to 10 other Art and Architecture professinals, enthusiasts and lovers.
Exclusive Private Tour
You’ll experience NY by yourself or with a group of your family, freinds and colleagues. Call or email us to customize your tour experience.
Experience New York with our PhD Architect-led Tours
Our public tours are 2 hours of transformational experiences that connect people with the city on a deeper level. We focus on 8 areas according to the location, neighborhood and their distinct character - weaving culture, history, architecture, art and design in an engaging, story-telling manner to uncover some of the city’s hidden gems and best-kept secrets.
