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DESTINASIAN.COM – AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 2019
DAVID^ LLOYD^ (TOP);^ COURTESYOFKING^ POWER^ MAHANAKHON;^ANDREWALBERTS;^ COURTESY^ OF^ AIRBNBGOOD TO GO UPDATEA TALL ORDERBangkok’s King Power Mahanakhon, a 314-meter Ole Scheeren skyscraper
distinguished by its pixel-like cutouts, now boasts the highest restaurant and
bar in town. Spanning the 76th and 77th floors, the brand-new Mahanakhon
Bangkok Skybar (mahanakhonbangkokskybar.com) was conceived as an “oasis
in the clouds” by interior architects Wilson Associates, who gave the modern
brasserie a chic, clubby look that combined Thai flavor and French sensibilities.
In the kitchen, executive chef Joshua Cameron—previously based in New York at
the three-Michelin-starred venue Eleven Madison Park—plays by similar rules,
creating Asian-influenced Western dishes as well as elevated versions of local
staples like larb, or minced meat salad, with grilled duck magret. —JLBAUHAUS REBORN
When visionary German architect Walter Gropius
founded the Weimar State Bauhaus art school,
he could not have predicted the enduring effect
it would have on future generations. A hundred
years on, Germany is celebrating this avant-garde
movement that sought to unite art, architecture, and
functionality using industrial materials like steel and
glass—forever changing modern life in the process.
Following the April inauguration of the Bauhaus
Museum Weimar (klassik-stiftung.de) in the school’s
birthplace, Bauhaus Museum Dessau (bauhaus-
dessau.de) will open its doors on September 8. Both
institutions harbor an astonishing array of original
Bauhaus artifacts, and provide a comprehensive
study of the style as never before. —James Louie
PARK LIFE
New York City is getting greener thanks
to a trio of recently opened waterfront
spaces. July saw the debut of Brooklyn’s
Shirley Chisholm State Park (parks.ny
.gov), named in honor of a local
politician who became the first African
American woman elected to Congress
in 1968. The recreational spot takes up
two former landfills fronting Jamaica
Bay, and features 16 kilometers of hiking
and biking trails that wind through
wildflower meadows and native
grassland. Over in Williamsburg, the
derelict grounds of a former riverside
sugar factory have been transformed
into Domino Park (dominopark.com).
James Corner Field Operations, the
landscape design firm behind the High
Line, retained factory machinery and
gantry cranes, contrasting the artifacts
with swamp white oaks and wooden
sun loungers. Just as intriguing is
Hunter’s Point South Park (nycgovparks
.org) at Queens’ Long Island City,
which features a promenade raised
above low-lying wetlands and an
accessible tree-filled peninsula that
becomes an island at high tide. Don’t
miss the cantilevered viewing platform
looking out across the East River to
Midtown Manhattan. —Daniel HartantoTaking a late
afternoon jog at
Hunter’s Point
South Park.16