- Author Candace Bushnell, Chef Mario Batali, Designer Isaac Mizrahi, and Other Top Figures of Design and Culture to Take Part in Weeklong Celebration -

NEW YORK, July 11 /PRNewswire/ -- The City of New York and House & Garden magazine today announced that the week of October 15-21 will be the first-ever Design Week in New York City. The weeklong celebration of New York design will include a wide range of events and activities in film, shopping, museums, galleries, architecture, tours, workrooms and gardens, highlighting beauty and hidden treasures throughout the five boroughs. Design Week is the result of a collaborative effort between NYC & Company, the city's marketing and tourism organization, and House & Garden magazine.

"I urge all New Yorkers and visitors to take advantage of Design Week, a tremendous opportunity to experience the five boroughs' vibrant arts and culture scenes," said Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. "Last year, 44 million tourists came to New York, providing a major boost to our economy. Many come to enjoy the city's diverse cultural attractions, and Design Week is another example of our commitment to the galleries, museums, theaters and arts centers that enhance the New York experience for all who visit or call New York home."

At the core of Design Week is House and Garden magazine's Design Happening '07, a weeklong expo that will showcase some of the city's most notable designers. The expo will consist of more than 30 events, ranging from a scavenger hunt to finding the best antique dealers in the city to the 2007 Design Leadership Summit with design icon Murray Moss and architect Ed Schlossberg. NYC & Company's involvement in Design Week is the most recent in series of creative partnerships to help coordinate large-scale events citywide, including this spring's Spider-Man Week in NYC and most recently NYC Restaurant Week: A Taste of Top Chef.

  Additional highlights of the week include:
  * A panel discussion with noted contributors on the future face of New
    York with founder and executive director of Sustainable South Bronx,
    Majora Carter; architect Daniel Liebeskind, who won the 2003 competition
    for the master plan to rebuild the World Trade Center site in Lower
    Manhattan; environmental activist and House & Garden columnist Bill
    McKibben and Mike Wallace, co-author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning
    Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898 and Distinguished Professor
    of History at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, among others
  * A tour of the Chinese Scholar's Garden in Staten Island
  * A dinner straight from the pages of Jay McInerney's House & Garden
    column "Uncorked," hosted by the fiction wunderkind-turned-oenophile,
    who will offer wine expertise and tastings
  * Inspired childrens' programming at The Center for Architecture
  * An insightful afternoon of tours and gardening with The Battery Park
    City Parks Conservancy
  * Cocktails and conversations with author Candace Bushnell, whose books
    Sex & The City and Lipstick Jungle have been adapted into television
    series
  * Lunch with Giorgio Deluca, creator and owner of the food lover's delight
    Dean & Deluca, at his Manhattan loft
  * A House & Garden auction at Philips de Pury & Company with sound advice
    on conquering auctionphobia
  * A peek inside several New York City apartments with real estate guru
    Barbara Corcoran
  * "Meet Me in Midtown" and "Passports to SoHo" -- special shopping
    discounts in Midtown and SoHo for the design obsessed
  * Dinner with fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi and Food Network star and
    chef Mario Batali at Mizrahi's design studio
  * Walking tours by the editors of House & Garden revealing their secret
    resources on everything from public gardens to historical architecture
    throughout the Bronx, Brooklyn, Staten Island, Manhattan and Queens.

"NYC & Company is pleased to form this alliance with House & Garden to present this exciting week of events," said NYC & Company CEO George Fertitta. "Whether it's fashion, architecture, museums or dining, New York City is unquestionably known as one of the world's true centers of design and culture, and this week is a perfect way to showcase what our city has to offer."

"Design Week is a unique opportunity to share the city's rich design offerings with our readers from all over the country and to toast New York as the design capital of the world," said Dominique Browning, Editor in Chief of House & Garden. "Each day, participants will live in the pages of House & Garden magazine through experiences and events that have been created exclusively to share New York's most dynamic design offerings. We are thrilled to celebrate with our readers in person."

House & Garden's Advisory Board for Design Happening '07 includes Barbara Corcoran, designer Jamie Drake, architect and founder of the Rockwell Group David Rockwell and interior designer and House & Garden Tastemaker Kelly Wearstler. Other luminaries include creative director for Oscar de La Renta Home Miles Redd; Grace Bonney, the leading design blogger and founder of the website design*sponge and Simon Doonan, creative director of Barneys New York.

"We are so grateful to the City of New York and all of our sponsors for allowing House & Garden to anchor the city's inaugural Design Week," said Joseph Lagani, vice president and publisher of House & Garden magazine. "We hope to offer New Yorkers an opportunity to see the living art that exists in their own backyards while personifying the spirit of House & Garden."

For additional details on Design Happening '07 and for ticket information, please visit designhappening.com.

About NYC & Company:

NYC & Company is the official marketing and tourism organization for the City of New York, dedicated to maximizing travel and tourism opportunities throughout the five boroughs, building economic prosperity and spreading the positive image of New York City worldwide.

About House & Garden:

House & Garden is the only magazine that shows more than 5.7 million readers how great design can touch their lives. It does so through extensive reporting on the design world at large, focusing on inspiring interiors, sophisticated and fun food & wine, rich cultural and travel features and passionate architecture reviews. Please visit houseandgarden.com for more information.

Source: NYC & Company

CONTACT: Kimberly Spell or Patrick Muncie, +1-212-484-1270, of NYC &
Company; Heather Lylis or Kate Ottenberg, +1-212-691-2800, of Sunshine, Sachs,
& Associates, for House & Garden; or Frederika Brookfield of House & Garden,
+1-212-630-2447

Web site: http://designhappening.com/
http://houseandgarden.com/