The Times has a fun profile of one of the elder statesmen of North Brooklyn, William Harvey, who transformed an old mechanic’s garage on North 8th into what he calls a Scando-Monican Brutalist artist studio and apartment. Harvey, a sculptor and housewares designer, bought the garage in ’98 and built the rooftop addition/current living space (shown here under construction in 2005) over the next several years; the home is filled with things like a homemade black walnut kitchen island, and furniture and fixtures purchased at warehouse sales, flea markets, thrift shops and IKEA. Harvey and his wife were early adopters of Long Island City and Greenpoint in the ’80s before they moved into their Williamsburg house, which has been featured in a movie and television show. Harvey believes Williamsburg is still defined, in part, by a do-it-yourself attitude. The thing about this neighborhood, he says, is that it was founded on D.I.Y. I think those values will dissipate, but right now it’s still going strong.
Scavenger King of Williamsburg [NY Times]
Photo from Property Shark circa 2005.