Founded by Alexandra Hodkowski and Alvaro Alcocer in 2018, Head Hi is an organization dedicated to art, design and architecture publications and cultural programming with an espresso bar located in Fort Greene, Brooklyn by the Navy Yard. Working with local and international artists, designers, publishers, community members and organizations in various fields, Head Hi is a space for exploration and interaction. In 2023, Head Hi created The New York Architecture + Design Book Club and has hosted multiple happenings including book launches, talks, exhibitions, and music performances. At their hybrid space, you can find a curated selection of reading materials from around the globe available for sale, as well as coffee, teas and pastries to enjoy during your visit.  

Head Hi is excited to announce the publication of their second book, co-published by Mousse, featuring the work of Milan-based architectural photographer Giovanna Silva. Titled Days without Number, New York, the book will feature a collection of more than 700 photos shot by Giovanna Silva during the last three years of long walks through NYC and include an introductory text from New York-based writer Sasha Frere-Jones. It is organized as a calendar, but it follows no sense of time and no chronology: it is a puzzle of images. Silva walked often more than ten miles a day guided by architecture, seeing as much as she could, obsessively passing by the same site again and again, exercising the body and the mind, mobility versus observation. This new book focusing on the exploration of New York City's buildings, streets, and built environment will be launched with an event at the Center for Architecture during Archtober 2024.

Silva’s photographic books have been published by Mousse, Hatje Cantz, and Nero among others. Her work has been shown at the 10th and 14th Venice architecture biennales, MACRO in Rome, Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa in Venice, the Triennale in Milan, the American Academy in Rome, FRAC Orléans, c/o Berlin, the Biennale de Rabat 2019, and the Italian Cultural Institute in New York. She is also the founder of Humboldt Books, a publishing house that focuses on books related to travel and collaborations between writers and photographers, as well as San Rocco Magazine. Silva came to her practice from a passion for architecture and a desire to travel the world, finding that producing books allowed her to do that. She is drawn to architectural photography as a means to tell the story of a place and to thoroughly explore the history of a given location. She depicts buildings as they are, capturing their imperfections and grittiness, and showcasing the ways in which they are interacted with, no matter how unconventional.  

To date, Head Hi has published one other book titled The Daily Mirror, a flip book featuring the choreography of Wendy Perron in 1976 on one side and Morgan Griffin’s interpretation of Perron’s dance in 2022 on the other. Both were filmed and photographed by world renowned cinematographer Babette Mangolte. For the release of the book, Head Hi produced a live dance performance with Perron and Griffin in New York City in front of an audience of around 100 attendees.

The book's co-publisher Mousse is an art publication established in Milan in 2006. Mousse traces the currents of contemporary culture through feature articles, interviews, and conversations among the most vivid voices in international criticism, along with emerging talents and key figures in the cultural debate.

Leading up to the launch event on October 29th, 2024, Head Hi will be sharing more stories about architecture books, book culture and more right here on the Archtober platform. Stay tuned!

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