Artist faked being a billionaire to photograph New York City’s best views • Hacker News Board

Re: Artist faked being a billionaire to photograph New York City’s best views

#141

Post by mattmanser » Thu, Apr 29, 2021, 9:11 AM UTC

PoignardAzur wrote: post #127

bobthepanda wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The average square footage of a Parisian studio would make NY’s tenements look downright palatial. The average NYC studio is 50 m^2. The larger end for a Parisian studio is given to be 35 m^2.

On the other hand, there's nothing forcing you to live in intra-muros Paris. I live in Nanterre, 5min away from the RER station, and my rent is 1200€/month for a 2-bedrooms apartment (50 m²). I have a Point is, you can have affordable-ish rents in a business center without building humongous high-rises everywhere, as long as your public transport network can support it.

Yes there is, circumstances.

There's nothing forcing you maybe, but plenty of people will be stuck there because of circumstances.

Re: Artist faked being a billionaire to photograph New York City’s best views

#142

Post by 271828182846 » Thu, Apr 29, 2021, 9:13 AM UTC

jimmyed wrote: post #21

ragle wrote: post #10

Off topic, but perhaps of interest to anyone in Thailand who would like to experience similar views firsthand: https://www.booking.com/hotel/th/thirty-nine-boulevard-execu... The room my wife and I booked in 2019 offered a panoramic, bird's eye view of Bangkok's skyline from one of the higher floors in the building. Not bad at ~$90 / night at the time.

Makes me want to take my few hundred thousands in retirement savings and live like a literal king in the 3rd world.

Thailand and especially Bangkok are not third world ... but let me guess - YOU are an "American", right?

Re: Artist faked being a billionaire to photograph New York City’s best views

#143

Post by playpause » Thu, Apr 29, 2021, 9:16 AM UTC

gelert wrote: post #88

test1235 wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>Expecting a city skyline to never change is ridiculous "In Athens, buildings are not allowed to surpass 12 floors so as not to block the view toward the Parthenon." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_A... I'd say this isn't typical of most of the world, but it's not unprecedented.

This is also a thing in London where certain views towards St Pauls Cathedral are protected.

The Guardian did an interesting interactive story a few years ago on how these 'viewing corridors' are affecting the skyline: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2015/dec/11/city-of...

Re: Artist faked being a billionaire to photograph New York City’s best views

#144

Post by Ichthypresbyter » Thu, Apr 29, 2021, 9:19 AM UTC

lanternfish wrote: post #35

oh_sigh wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What was her methodology? > To pass as a convincing buyer, Schmied enlisted an antiquarian friend in Budapest to serve as her “husband,” and invented a 21-month-old baby, a personal chef, and a personal assistant named "Coco." She also blew the entire allowance from her residency at Dumbo’s Triangle Arts Association on manicures, makeup and clothes. Oh, but right...literally none of that was necessary: >...Surprising…

They didn't formally initiate a credit check or validate net worth, but I guarantee none of those brokers would give me the time of day if I called in right now. The theater is there to avoid the credit checks; the fact that they didn't check just means her plan worked.

Slightly reminded of the story about the guy who went into his local VW dealer and asked to test-drive a Golf GTI (which he could afford to buy). They did whatever (formal or informal) checks they normally do, and gave him the keys.

He drove it across town to the BMW dealer, and told them that his new GTI wasn't fast enough for him and he was interested in trading it in for an M3.

Repeat at higher- and higher-end car dealers until he's in a Lamborghini by lunchtime, which he then had a few hours to drive around in before he went back returning all of the cars...

[Of course, this only works in countries which don't have special easily-recognizable license plates for cars owned by a dealer.]

Re: Artist faked being a billionaire to photograph New York City’s best views

#145

Post by samizdis » Thu, Apr 29, 2021, 9:23 AM UTC

gelert wrote: post #88

test1235 wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>Expecting a city skyline to never change is ridiculous "In Athens, buildings are not allowed to surpass 12 floors so as not to block the view toward the Parthenon." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_A... I'd say this isn't typical of most of the world, but it's not unprecedented.

This is also a thing in London where certain views towards St Pauls Cathedral are protected.

Not just towards St Paul's, but also to the Palace of Westminster. See the City of London's "Protected views and tall buildings" planning docs [1] and the section "Protected vistas in London" in the Wikipedia page Protected View [2].

Also, see the Wikipedia page on Greenwich Hospital, London [3]:

An early controversy arose when it emerged that the original plans for the hospital would have blocked the riverside view from the Queen's House. Queen Mary II therefore ordered that the buildings be split, providing an avenue leading from the river through the hospital grounds up to the Queen's House and Greenwich Hill beyond.

The resulting effect is displayed well in this contemporary pic:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Naval_College.JPG

[1] https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/services/planning/planning-p...

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protected_view

[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenwich_Hospital,_London

Re: Artist faked being a billionaire to photograph New York City’s best views

#146

Post by jimmyed » Thu, Apr 29, 2021, 9:26 AM UTC

271828182846 wrote: post #142

jimmyed wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Makes me want to take my few hundred thousands in retirement savings and live like a literal king in the 3rd world.

Thailand and especially Bangkok are not third world ... but let me guess - YOU are an "American", right?

Nothing wrong with being third world mate. Thailand is very much third world though.

Re: Artist faked being a billionaire to photograph New York City’s best views

#147

Post by vanderZwan » Thu, Apr 29, 2021, 9:27 AM UTC

PoignardAzur wrote: post #140

vanderZwan wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"No, I won't play golf, it's playing marbles for people who don't want to bend down." - Youp van het Hek Jokes aside, it's because it is a way to signal that you are part of the in-group by sharing in a particular activity. And what better way than to make that the kind of activity that implicitly shows off your privilege? Golf involves a large amount of grass fields set aside and maintained just for you and your fri…

> (I think there's even a name for this in the context of evolutionary biology). I think you're thinking of the handicap principle. See also: https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/2014-11-01

Your thinking is spot on, and thanks for the funny link! :)

Re: Artist faked being a billionaire to photograph New York City’s best views

#148

Post by maccard » Thu, Apr 29, 2021, 9:28 AM UTC

test1235 wrote: post #62

cheriot wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, if you want to ruin their investment then issue building permits for more of them. > They cast these huge shadows and block views Talk about first world problems. Expecting a city skyline to never change is ridiculous. The only problem is that so few people use these buildings. The best kind of density regulation requires _more_ density.

>Expecting a city skyline to never change is ridiculous "In Athens, buildings are not allowed to surpass 12 floors so as not to block the view toward the Parthenon." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_A... I'd say this isn't typical of most of the world, but it's not unprecedented.

I live in Edinburgh, and we have "key views" (example of the centre ones here https://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/downloads/download/13259/key-vi... - there's 5 or 6 pages but no link to them all) there's dozens of the views in the city, and no planning will be granted that materially changes the skyline in the views!

Re: Artist faked being a billionaire to photograph New York City’s best views

#149

Post by pharmakom » Thu, Apr 29, 2021, 9:33 AM UTC

nindalf wrote: post #136

choeger wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, more density, because all that matters is the size of cities and their economy. 90% of children never waking up to the sounds of birds around their house? Who cares? 90% of grownups never plant even a tomatoes? What does it matter! Families of four or more confined to single-bathroom, two-bedroom apartments? The cosier, the better! The most important bit is that the cheap workforce reaches their dull jobs in ti…

> God forbid they don't behave "ecologically efficient" when doing so I like how you casually take a dump on being environmentally friendly. Yes, city dwellers do have less of an impact on the environment. Like all animals we like as much space as possible. But unlike other animals we don’t need it to survive. If more of us fit in cities, there would be more space that could be left for wild animals. Maybe that equil…

- high density cities

- rewilding

- fast and expansive rail network

- right to roam

Get these things right and we can lower our environmental footprint whilst maintaining - or even improving - quality of life for the average individual.

Re: Artist faked being a billionaire to photograph New York City’s best views

#150

Post by fighterpilot » Thu, Apr 29, 2021, 9:34 AM UTC

LimaBearz wrote: post #55

peteretep wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> many of whom got their wealth in shady circumstances Like inheriting it, which is the shadiest of shady ways to make money

I can’t tell if that’s sarcasm or not so I’ll just remind everyone of Adam Smith: "A power to dispose of estates for ever is manifestly absurd. The earth and the fulness of it belongs to every generation, and the preceding one can have no right to bind it up from posterity. Such extension of property is quite unnatural." In this country there was a time yes where inheriting it is shady and it’s something I fear our c…

It's quite to me natural to me, and I think Adam Smith is off base here.

If the parents earned that wealth through voluntary exchange, and they didn't do so by exploiting negative externalities, then it's theirs to do with as they wish. If they want to pay 1000 people to fan them, start a charity, or give it all to their kids, that's their prerogative.

It follows from the concept of private property. The parents earned that wealth at one point, in that someone voluntarily gave it to them in exchange for subjective utility of equal or greater value.

What right is it of yours to take it away from them just because you don't approve of the way they're spending it? They can buy 500 Ferraris but can't give it to their kids?

In my view it's plain theft dressed up in layers of abstraction and indirection just to hide that fact. (No, not all taxation is theft, as some level is necessary, but swiping half or all of someone's property is).