Celebrating the City: 2019 MAS Awards

Event

Honoring Excellence in Art and Architecture

On Thursday, March 28, MAS celebrated works of art and architecture and enrich and ennoble urban life. The 2019 Celebrating the City event was held at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and included a special conversation between our Brendan Gill Prize Winner Stephen Maing, NYPD Lieutenant Edwin Raymond who was featured in his film, and Gill Prize jury members Patricia Cruz (Executive Director of Harlem Stage) and Cassim Shepard (Filmmaker and Author of Citymakers: The Culture and Craft of Practical Urbanism).

The Brendan Gill Prize was established in 1987 in honor of Brendan Gill by friend and fellow MAS board member Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis along with board members Helen Tucker and Margot Wellington. The Prize is given each year to the creator of a specific work—a book, essay, musical composition, play, painting, sculpture, architectural design, film or choreographic piece—that best captures the spirit and energy of New York City. The 2019 Prize went to filmmaker Stephen Maing for his documentary Crime + Punishment, a moving and carefully observed work that examines policing in NYC from the perspective of courageous officers who risk everything when they decide to expose racially discriminatory practices by the NYPD.

Selected each year by our esteemed jury, the MASterworks Awards pay tribute to projects that make a significant contribution to New York City’s built environment. From some of the city’s most iconic buildings to its hidden gems, our list of past winners includes the likes of New Lab, the Fulton Center, McCarren Pool, Brooklyn Bridge Park Boathouse, the High Bridge, and the Museum at Eldridge Street. All of our 2019 winning projects are listed below.

The event was FREE for members.
Non-members: $15 (until March 1)
Non-members: $25 (after March 1)

Thursday, March 28
6:30 PM — 9:00 PM

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
515 Malcolm X Blvd
New York, NY 10037

Cross Streets: Malcolm X Blvd and W 135th Street

Nearby transit:
Right off of the 2/3 subway line at 135th St. / Malcolm X Blvd.
Or, it is a 10-minute walk from the C/B lines at W 135th St. / St. Nicholas Ave.

Tickets:
Member: Free
Non-member: $25

Buy Tickets
  • Stephen Maing
    2019 Brendan Gill Prize Winner: Filmmaker Stephen Maing.
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  • still photo of a scene from the move Crime and Punishment
    Crime + Punishment.
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2019 Brendan Gill Prize Honoree

stephen maing

Crime + Punishment

New York City filmmaker, Stephen Maing, is awarded the 2019 Brendan Gill Award for his remarkably powerful documentary, Crime + Punishment. Maing’s film is a moving and carefully observed work that examines policing in NYC from the perspective of courageous officers who risk everything when they decide to expose racially discriminatory practices by the NYPD. The film reveals the complexity of our most pressing urban matters, from the day-to-day demands of being a police officer to community-driven protests in response to highly charged issues. We see what happens when 12 officers break the infamous “wall of silence.” In this captivating cinematic investigation, we gain a deeper understanding of the everyday problems that result in disastrous consequences for communities of color. Amidst a class action lawsuit over illegal policing quotas, Crime + Punishment unfolds as a masterful example of filmmaking, both in craft and content. It was winner of Sundance’s Special Award for Social Impact.

The Brendan Gill Jury selected this extraordinary documentary from a highly competitive field of nominations. MAS honors and celebrates the work of gifted filmmaker Stephen Maing.

  • exterior of Columbia University's building, The Forum
    2019 MASterworks Award Winner, Best New Building, Columbia University: The Forum. Design: Renzo Piano Building Workshop, Architects in collaboration with Dattner Architects.  Design Architect: Renzo Piano Building Workshop. Executive Architect: Dattner Architects. Associate Architect: Caples Jefferson Architects. Photo: © Nic Lehoux.
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  • rendering of Hunter's Point South Waterfront Park
    2019 MASterworks Award Winner, Best Urban Landscape, Hunter's Point South Waterfront Park, Phase II. Park Designers: SWA/BALSLEY and WEISS/MANFREDI. Prime Consultant and Infrastructure Designer: ARUP. Photo: ©Tatham/SWA, courtesy of SWA/Balsley and WEISS/MANFREDI.
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  • exterior of 462 Broadway
    2019 MASterworks Award Winner, Best Restoration, 462 Broadway. Architect: PBDW Architects (Samuel White and Brigitte Cook) Developer/Owner/Client: Meringoff Properties General Contractor: Archstone Builders LLC Restoration Contractor: MRS Inc. Metal Fabrication: Allen Architectural Metals Window and Door Fabricator: Artistic Windows. Photo: Francis Dzikowski Photography.
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  • rendering of the Sunset Park Interim Library
    2019 MASterworks Award Winner, Best Adaptive Reuse, Sunset Park Interim Library. Architect: Leroy Street Studio Architecture. General Contractor: Sciame Construction. Project Client: Brooklyn Public Library. Photo: Halkin/Mason Photography. Leroy Street Studio.
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  • high angle view of Domino Park
    2019 MASterworks Award Winner, Best New Urban Amenity, Domino Park. Developer: Two Trees Management. Landscaper: James Corner Field Operations. Photo: Daniel Levin.
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  • the renovated Pier 35 in Manhattan
    2019 MASterworks Award Winner, Best New Infrastructure, Pier 35. Architect: SHoP Architects. Landscape Architects: Ken Smith Workshop. Structural Engineer: ARUP. Civil Engineer: HDR Design. Builder: Hunter Roberts Construction Group. Project Client: NYCEDC. Lighting Consultant: Tillotson Design Associates. Code Consultant: CCI. Acoustical Engineer: ARUP. Sustainability Consultant: ARUP. ADA Consultant: CCI. Geotechnical Consultant: ARUP. Photo: SHoP Architects.
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2019 MASterworks Awards Honorees

Best New Building
Columbia University: The Forum

Best Urban Landscape
Hunter’s Point South Waterfront Park, Phase II

Best Restoration
462 Broadway

Best Adaptive Reuse
Sunset Park Interim Library

Best New Urban Amenity
Domino Park

Best New Infrastructure
Pier 35

2019 MASterworks Awards Jury

  • Barry Bergdoll, Meyer Schapiro Professor of Art History and Archaeology, Columbia University and Curator, Department of Architecture and Design, MoMA
  • J. Yolande Daniels, Co-founding Partner, studioSUMO, Visiting Associate Professor, MIT School of Architecture and Eero Saarinen Visiting Professor, Yale University School of Architecture
  • Benjamin Prosky, Assoc. AIA, Executive Director, AIA New York / Center for Architecture
  • Suchi Reddy, Founder, Reddymade
  • Anne Van Ingen, Chair, Preservation League of New York State

Questions?

Contact us at events@mas.org or (212) 935-3960.

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logo for the Brendan Gill Prize
1987

Establishing the Brendan Gill Prize

MAS establishes the annual Brendan Gill Prize, which honors the creator of a specific work of art produced in the previous year that best captures the spirit and energy of New York City. The inaugural prize is given to Rudolph Burckhardt for a film series at MoMA.

View Our Full History