ANTHONY W. ROBINS
Tour Leader
Anthony W. Robins has been guiding natives and visitors to the city’s wonders of steel and stone for twenty-five years. He has led hundreds of walking tours of New York history and architecture for, among others, the Cooper-Hewitt Museum, the Whitney Museum, the Municipal Art Society, the 92nd Street Y, the Organization of American Historians, the Chicago Architectural Foundation, the National Park Service, the Academy of American Poets, the University of Pennsylvania, the State University of New York, the Senior Fulbright Fellows in New York, and the 1992 Democratic National Convention. A founding member and current Vice President of The Art Deco Society of New York, he created the Society’s original tour program in 1981. And in 2017, the Guides Association of New York City honored him with the “Guiding Spirit Award.”
Lecturer
He also lectures on New York history and architecture to audiences ranging from high school students to senior citizen groups, from general audiences to university seminars. He has lectured both in the United States and abroad including, in New York City, the Metropolitan Museum, Fordham University, Pratt Institute, Cooper-Union, the National Arts Club, the Bard Graduate Center, the Municipal Art Society, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the New School; the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C.; in London in the U.K.; in Sydney and Perth in Australia; in San Jose, Costa Rica (in Spanish); and in Rome, Italy, at the University of Rome and the American Academy (in Italian).
Teacher
He also teaches students of varying levels about the history of architecture and development in New York City. Courses include:
- A regular Columbia University summer session class on the topic – is a graded course, with essays, a presentation and a final paper. Click here for information and registration for the 2018 course.
- Five- and six-session adult ed courses – no grades or assignments – for New York University’s School of Professional Studies. Click here for information.
- An annual seminar at the Municipal Art Society on how to research New York City buildings – click here for information.
Author
He is the author of five books as well as a number of short guide books and many newspaper and magazine articles (click here for those). Two of his books, including Subway Style and, most recently, New York Art Deco: A Guide to Gotham’s Jazz Age Architecture, have won a New York City Book Award from the New York Society Library.
Historic Preservation Consultant
Following a 20-year-long stint at the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, Robins has continued to promote historic preservation as a consultant, notably preparing nominations of New York City properties to the National Register of Historic Places. He currently serves on the Board of the New York Preservation Archive Project, as well as the Art Deco Society of New York, and was formerly on the Board of the Metropolitan Chapter of the Victorian Society in America.
For more:
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