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Author Archives: matthew.finnegan
Posts: 7 (archived below)
Comments: 5
Final Project – Stapleton
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- A local church run out of a storefront on Bay Street in Stapleton.
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- Stapleton Train Station links the neighborhood to the Staten Island Ferry and the rest of the island, offering a free ride.
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- The Stapleton Projects are infamous on Staten Island as being one of the most dangerous areas.
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- Industrial spaces and barbed wired are not an uncommon sight in Stapleton.
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- The North Shore of Staten Island, in which Stapleton is situated, is known for being more diverse than the South Shore.
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- Stapleton is also home to a small Sri Lankan community.
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- The New York City Arts Cypher promotes graffiti art in Stapleton. They are responsible for many of the murals found around Stapleton.
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- The topography of the area is very hilly. The Bridge looms in the distance as one heads up towards St. Pauls Ave.
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- A Well kept house on St. Pauls Ave
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- One of many large homes on St. Pauls Ave. It offers a sharp difference to the rest of the neighborhood. Here the people are mostly well off white homeowners.
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- Stapleton is also known for its local art scene, centered on Van Duzer Street.
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- The Full Cup is a local hotspot for bands, ranging from folk to punk. This is the sister of the establishment’s new owner, the fourth in a decade.
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- The Melon Farmers, a local band, plays on the front stage of The Full Cup.
Stapleton on Staten Island is not well known outside of Staten Island and so it is the focus of my final project. The area is mostly minorities, such as Hispanics, African Americans, and Sri Lankans. It is home to a number of Spanish and Sri Lankan restaurants, as well as a local music and arts scene on Van Duzer street that attracts young kids and adults alike on Staten Island. The area is mostly poor, but when one goes uphill towards St Pauls, there are large, well kept homes overlooking the area. It is a place of contrast and far more urban than one would expect for Staten Island.
Posted in Assignment Six - Final Project
222 Comments
Issues
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- Entrance to a plaza downtown. The plaza is located two or three flights up from the street.
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- Entrance to another plaza, at ground level.
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- Benches sit empty and unused during lunchtime.
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- Benches here too sit empty, in a dark space in the shadow of nearby towers, surrounded by brown bricks and brown paint.
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- People walk into the plaza, surrounded by residential towers. But no one stays.
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- The main entrance to the elevated plaza, leading into the street. A dark, cavernous space that does not invite passersby.
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- A woman walks by an ampitheatre space in the plaza on 23rd Street.
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- A similar set up on the elevated plaza sits empty as well, but with no passersby.
In Manhattan, open space is a valuable commodity. The city had offered tax incentives in the 1970’s to spur the construction of public plazas to allow additional space to Manhattan crowds. However, not all of these spaces were designed to invite visitors. Of the two spaces photographed, one is set up several flights from the street. One entrance leads onto the street, but is dark and cavernous and uninviting. The other is situated along an expressway far from pedestrians. The developers could build a plaza to attract tax incentives, without attracting the unwanted crowd. The other plaza, on 23rd Street, was perhaps more well intentioned. Yet it is nothing but a cold, hard space of concrete and brown bricks that does not invite the passersby into it. It is well integrated, but not inviting.
NYC Marathon
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- “FRANCE!! GRAARR!!”
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- There to direct runners.
As close as I could get before security made me go away.
Posted in Assignment One - Event
8 Comments
Arrest on Halloween
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- A man stands in handcuffs with the police.
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- To the left, you can see a group mostly comprised of African Americans.
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- White spectators standing across the street.
Trick or treating on Halloween, I came across this scene. A group of kids and a few adults got into a fight in Staten Island’s South Shore. Speaking to someone there, someone began throwing candy or eggs and a racial epithet was shouted, resulting in the fight.
Bensonhurst
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- The tracks over 86th street, stretching down its horizon. It creates a dark, cavernous space over the traffic.
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- A dog is tied up on 86th street in front of a shop.
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- The crowds passing in front of a Chinese market along 86th street.
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- A man inspects and purchases tomatoes from a shop along 86th street.
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- Dried squids in a Chinese shop. It is curious to note that they use the English system of measurements to sell food, as metric units are used in China.
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- A hispanic man leaves an Italian Deli along 86th street, as a Hasidic man stops to decide if he should go inside.
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- A shop working changing a sign at a produce shop.
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- A worker quickly and neatly packs fruit at a grocer along 86th street.
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- The crowd along 86th street. Here, the produce shops spill out into the sidewalk and meet with the crowds of people passing by.
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- A shoe shop closing down along 86th street. Some women look through the pile for a deal on some shoes.
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- A chinese boy exits a CVS. A national chain, the CVS here in Bensonhurst does posts “Pharmacy” in Russian above the door.
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- Italian men play chess in a local park.
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- Nearby, a group of Chinese men also play in the park, but a different kind of game.
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- Homes and apartments such as these rowhouses are typical of the Bensonhurst area.
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- Two Pakistani girls in head scarves leaving the Bay Parkway station in the heart of 86th street. There is a noticeable Pakistani presence in Bensonhurst.
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- The D train turns around a bend at the end of New Utrecht Ave., marking the start of Bensonhurst’s 86th Street commercial strip. The train is the lifeblood of 86th street.
Bensonhurst is located in South Brooklyn, along the west end line. Traditionally known for its Italian community, the face of Bensonhurst has changed over the years. Today, there is a vibrant community of Italians, Chinese, and Pakistanis mixed throughout the neighborhood. These new cultures can be seen in the life along 86th street, one of the most well known shopping streets in Brooklyn. So too can the cultural comparisons been seen in places like parks or at the churches in the neighborhood.
Posted in Assignment Four - Community
5 Comments
Environmental Portrait, Finalized
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- Bryan examining a wine bottle at a local liquor store. It’s not his usual taste.
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- He moved on to looking at hard liquor, more his style.
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- Here is Bryan showing off his guitar to a worker at the store. He had left it standing on its own as he shopped around. He was quick and happy to open the case and show his favorite guitar.
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- At the register. Beside him is a close mutual friend, Pheobe. Bryan, Pheobe and I together often form a crew on the weekends.
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- Breaking a sweat: Bryan is of a large stature and often feels hot moving around.
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- Preparing his favorite drink, Jack Daniels Whiskey – on the rocks.
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- Bryan cooling off with a cold glass of Jack Daniels, sweat on his brow as he takes his sip.
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- Here Bryan is playing a few chords for a friend at a party.
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- Bryan likes to discuss music with friends. Here he exchanges a few words about the music with a friend after playing for her.
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- Bryan is no stranger to playing by himself. Here, at the same party, he is now by himself but continues to play. The only listener he needs is himself.
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- At a party in Bed Stuy, Brooklyn. Bryan and I went to the roof. He enjoys photography himself and experimented with me intaking shots. He prefers to spend his time in smaller groups with those he is familiar with, than downstairs at a crowded venue.
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- The Manhattan skyline looms nearby. After standing for too long, Bryan needed to take a seat.
My environmental portrait is on a close friend, Bryan Karundeng. A man of large stature, Bryan once had cancer as a young teenager. His troubled past has on occasion led him to indulge in drinking, an issue he is very open with. His habits are better tamed today, but he still has a taste for Jack Daniels on the rocks. He plays music, though does not perform on stage very often. He hangs around with many “scenesters” on the Staten Island music scene. He occasionally goes to shows in Brooklyn or Manhattan, especially to support fellow musicians from Staten Island. Though, he does not always pull himself into the crowd at parties and events. He tends to pull himself aside with close confidants to talk, hangout, play music for them or “Jam”.
Despite his aversion to crowds at parties and shows, he is a very friendly and open person. He loves to strike up conversations with people, especially about music. He has a passion for instruments and their qualities and enjoys discussing the ins and outs of particular guitars or ukeleles. It is not uncommon to see him calmly and contently playing music by himself at a party, strumming just loud enough to hear himself over the music.
Posted in Assignment Three - Environmental Portrait
Comments Off on Environmental Portrait, Finalized
