Once a paradigm of how a failing metropolis could be turned around, New York appears to be backsliding towards the bad old days of violent crime, crumbling services and perilous subways. We meet the residents determined to…
George Nakashima was one of 20th-century America’s leading furniture luminaries, until his death in 1990. But far from fading into insignificance, his daughter Mira has carried on the company he founded – and, with it, the…
A slice of US-style modernism deep in the heart of the Caribbean, Puerto Rico’s El Monte provokes an almost messianic zeal among its adherents. To them, El Monte is not simply a home but an experiment in how to live.
The old master still teaching his would-be successors new tricks, Álvaro Siza is as dedicated to architecture now as when he started his practice 60 years ago. Optimistic despite his country’s predicament, his focus is set…
El Salvador’s ‘El Faro’ media firm had humble beginnings. Fast forward 15 years, however, and the mainly online news outlet has become one of Central America’s most important indie voices. Monocle meets founder Carlos Dada…
The Boston Society of Architects has moved in as have media companies, restaurateurs and developers. The red-brick warehouse-style lofts provide creative living and the rest of Boston is on the doorstep.
The Big Apple’s annual ode to chocolate is packed with punters unwrapping exotic bars of the brown stuff from around the world. The push this year – chocolate as a sophisticated and healthy option for a nation that conti…
In a former jail, now home to the American College of Building Arts, students are learning traditional restoration techniques and preserving their city of Charleston, South Carolina, in the process.
While post-industrial towns such as Detroit languish in a ‘rust belt’, Pittsburgh is bucking the trend, teeing itself up as a major hi-tech hub and an alternative to California’s Silicon Valley. Monocle visits its thriving…
Cory Booker is reviving a neglected city – and in the process the mayor of Newark has attracted the attention of influential people. With the same ‘yes we can’ attitude as Obama, he may one day even follow in the preside…
Tel Aviv’s Noga is home to a multicultural, creative community. Foreign buyers and modern luxury developments are moving in but it hasn’t lost its original feel. And it’s close to the beach too.
Imagine trying to sell products to people who don’t watch TV and cannot use the internet. That’s the challenge for students studying at the Haredi Advertising Academy, which trains them in how to make advertisements aimed…
Asia remains thirsty for western wines and in California there’s an unlikely vineyard owner making the most of the boom: computer game mogul Kenzo Tsujimoto. Overleaf we look at more food and drink trends for 2011 and…
Palestine is on the cusp of getting its own modern banking system and the Palestinian pound may return. Monocle talks to the governor of the Palestine Monetary Authority, Jihad al-Wazir, about changes being made to the…
A good radio station can be the voice of a city, the meeting place for like-minded folk. But in New York, Alanna Heiss has turned the dial to create something unique – AIR, a radio station for the city’s art crowd.
