Profile

When Gil Shapiro opened Urban Archaeology’s first showroom in 1978, he ignited the trend of salvage design, reusing discarded materials from demolished buildings in new ways. Now boasting two showrooms in Manhattan, plus three more in the Hamptons, Boston, and Chicago, Urban Archaeology remains on the movement’s cutting edge, reworking moldings, fixtures, and even entire walls into new and exciting designs. This location’s main space encompasses two floors, part showroom and part studio. Murals of salvaged mosaic combine with antique bathtubs and new lighting fixtures to show home renovators their many options. Downstairs, a studio houses Urban Archaeology’s designers and their first-rate replicas of antique and discontinued fixtures. Items like bathtubs, tables, and chairs come ready-made, but fixtures can be custom designed; the vast selection of tile and stone, sourced from over 100 U.S. locations, can be ordered through the showroom or on the website. Urban Archaeology also designs retail concepts for commercial spaces, including a number of swanky local boutiques. — Faran Alexis Krentcil