When we think of Open House New York, we rightfully think about buildings and the thrill of getting access to the otherwise inaccessible. But this summer, in celebration of the 15th anniversary of Open House New York Weekend, we invite you to join us as we explore some of the deeper values and ideas that make the experience of architecture and cities so powerful, values and ideas that Open House New York itself champions in its programs.

On July 27, join OHNY and Alexandra Horowitz for a conversation about observation. Alexandra Horowitz is the author of the New York Times best-seller Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell, and Know (2009), On Looking: A Walker’s Guide to the Art of Observation (2013), and Being a Dog: Following the Dog into a World of Smell (2016). She is an adjunct Associate Professor at Barnard College, Columbia University, where she teaches seminars in creative non-fiction and canine cognition, and performs research at the Dog Cognition Lab. She lives and walks in New York City with her husband, young son, and two large, sniffy dogs.

AIA CES: 1 LU

Open House New York’s Conversations on the City offers diverse perspectives on the issues defining New York’s recovery, resilience, and reopening in the aftermath of COVID-19. The series was launched at the onset of the pandemic in April 2020 amid a moment of uncertainty about the future of urban life, ultimately drawing together an audience of 10,000 over the subsequent months. Organized around a broad theme or topic, the series has a point of view: urban life brings an abiding joy. What makes cities continue to thrive, what propels them forward, is a shared need for human connection; this is what cities make possible and it will always prevail over whatever challenges may arise.