Demolition Depot: Salvaging Design & History
Edited by Amanda Gabriele
LOOKBOOKS contributor Alex Hahn visits the Demolition Depot in Harlem to step back in time and discover centuries of architectural salvage. Check out his experience and interview with the owner below.
It’s a rare and wonderful thing to feel lost, overwhelmed and inspired. Losing oneself to a vast, sprawling inventory of fragmented history never felt as good as a trip to the Demolition Depot, an architectural salvage company, possibly the largest institution of it’s kind. With a history dating back 41 years and an inventory that proves both intimidating and inspiring, Demolition Depot demands your respect. No one can help but feel inspired by simply wandering around the three stories of stained glass, doors, windows, 18-foot-tall mirrors, furniture from all places and times, carved granite frescos, intricate paving stones made from marble, stone columns, old English telephone booths, door knobs, 8-foot-tall clock faces and mirrored wall panels from some of the most opulent homes imaginable (just to name a small fraction of inventory). All of this can make even the most well-adapted Manhattan apartment dweller long for space to design and meld all of this wonderful old with some new.
