When the great urbanist Lewis Mumford spoke from The Cooper Union Great Hall stage in 1958, he described what he called “the nature of creativity” as an imperative element of human endeavor, an equal partner to pragmatism in building a just and humane world. In that spirit, this program brings together thinkers from architecture, art, and politics to discuss the complex factors of city planning, from affordability to aesthetics and public space. Panelists include City Council Member Shekar Krishan, artist David Brooks, and architect Savina Romanos—all graduates of The Cooper Union. WNYC and Gothamist’s Liam Quigley moderates. This free, public program is part of the John Jay Iselin Memorial Lecture series and an inaugural event of All Cooper Weekend.  

Register 

Registration on EventBrite is required. However, an EventBrite ticket does not guarantee entry as this is a first-come-first-served free event. 

Panelists 

David Brooks is a New York City-based artist and professor at New York University Gallatin School of Individualized Study who makes sculptures and earthworks that explore how we understand and interact with nature. His work investigates how cultural concerns cannot be divorced from the natural world, while also questioning the terms under which nature is perceived and utilized. Brooks received his M.F.A. from Columbia University and his B.F.A. from The Cooper Union; he is the recipient of the Rome Prize, numerous research grants to the Amazon from the Coypu Foundation, and a Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship. Brooks has had solo exhibitions and major projects at museums around the world. From 2011 to 2012 Brooks had Desert Rooftops on view in Times Square, a 5000-sq. ft. earthwork commissioned by Art Production Fund; from 2017 to 2018 a large-scale geologic installation on Governors Island as the inaugural commission by the Trust for Governors Island, NYC; as well as a growing earthwork, Budding Bird Blind, as the inaugural commission by Planting Fields Foundation, Oyster Bay, NY in 2020. 

Shekar Krishnan is the NYC Council Member for District 25, Jackson Heights, Elmhurst, and Woodside, Queens, some of the most diverse immigrant communities in the world. He is the first Indian-American ever elected to the City Council in NYC history and the Chair of the Council’s Committee on Oversight and Investigations, holding accountable anyone and anything that takes advantage of New Yorkers. In his previous term, Council Member Krishnan served as the Chair of the Council’s Committee on Parks and Recreation, negotiating the highest budget ever for NYC Parks. 

In the Council, he has championed workers’ rights by passing legislation to decriminalize street vending and successfully leading the largest and strongest worker protection bill for Uber and Lyft drivers in the nation. 

Before his election to the City Council, Council Member Krishnan was a long-time community activist in Jackson Heights and Elmhurst and a civil rights lawyer fighting housing discrimination. He earned his B.S.E. at The Cooper Union and his J.D. at the University of Michigan Law School. 

Savina Romanos is an associate director at !melk landscape architecture & urban design, where she leads the conception, design, and coordination of complex master plans, urban design strategies, and public realm projects across the United States, Middle East, Europe, and Asia. She has directed teams and coordinated the design of projects across multiple disciplines, scales, and geographic contexts. These include major developments in Dubai and Abu Dhabi; Pier 57 along New York’s Hudson River; "The Green River” project, an ambitious new central park and urban framework for Cairo Capital; the 30th Street Station District Master Plan and Plaza in Philadelphia; and the Verdugo Wash Visioning Master Plan in Glendale, California. In each of these projects, Romanos works to establish strong urban identities while creating public spaces that are socially vibrant, environmentally responsive, and grounded in their local context. 

She holds a Master of Architecture in Urban Design from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. She also holds a Bachelor of Architecture with Distinction from The Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture at The Cooper Union. 

Moderator 
Liam Quigley is a New York City-based reporter covering parks and sanitation for WNYC and Gothamist where his journalism focuses on urban infrastructure and how the changing use of public space shapes the city. Quigley’s reporting has also appeared in Hell Gate, The New York Daily News, The New York Times, and The Village Voice.