By: Freda Iskhakova, Eleni Stellatos, Victoria Yagudayeva

Greenwich Village has had a very prominent history in New York City. During the 16th century Native Americans referred to it as Sapokanican. Its current named evolved from when the English took over New Amsterdam called it Grin’wich. Beginning from the 1800s, the affluence that represents a lot of Greenwich today became evident. Houses were being built with a Greek Revival style, which is still seen in the area today. Once immigration took affect in the area, the wealthy started to decrease and Greenwich became more commercialized. The Village was home to the famous Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. One of the most prominent works of architecture we saw while in Washington Square Park was the Washington Square Arch, which was constructed by the Stanford White in 1892.

Bohemian culture dominated the Village during the twentieth century after the wave of immigration. During this time art was very prominent and art galleries, books and theaters were given a lot of attention. What is now the New York Studio School was a modern American art museum. Due to its low rent costs many artists were able to live there and create a community. During the 50s, the Bohemian artist community in Greenwich, as well as in California, specifically, in North Beach, Venice West, gave rise to the Beat Movement. The members of the movement were called “beatniks.” The beatniks were “generally apolitical and indifferent to social problems, they advocated personal release, purification, and illumination through the heightened sensory awareness that might be induced by drugs, jazz, sex, or the disciplines of Zen Buddhism” (Britannica).

Many structures from the 1800s were destroyed in the 40s, while trying to change the character of the city. It led to the creation of a preservation movement to protect many of the structures that are still intact today. The Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation is trying to advocate for its preservation. Although during its early artistic period Greenwich Village was affordable, as the years passed it has become very hard to live in with the rising costs.

Our Experience…

As we walked through Greenwich Village, we immediately felt a “city-type” sense. Everything was so different than what we are used to. In the video, we tried to capture the spirit of the Village. There was a huge variation of people there- tourists, natives, and just employees. Most of them were very welcoming and friendly. We captured a few of them in our interviews and it is interesting to note how each of them have such different opinions about Greenwich Village.

There was also artwork everywhere! The sculptures, architecture, and even music in Greenwich Village all represent forms of art. Yet what we appreciated the most was the different forms of street performances. We were able to include some of the performances in our video. The performances we witnessed range from “Coyote and Crick”, who played instruments, to a live street performance by a group of people.

A form of art that really stood out in Greenwich Village was street dancing. When we went to Washington Square Park, there was a group of street dancers who put on loud hip-hop music and drew a crowd of tourists, NYU students, and other people from the park by putting on a great show. This group of dancers was skilled in gymnastics and break-dancing. They were also amazing when it came to making their audience feel like a part of the break-dancing culture by selecting many people to join their dance routine. The importance of this form of art is it’s ability to procure the dancers money. By doing what they loved most, these performers were able to make a living. The street dancers went around asking the audience to donate money to them as a “thank you” for their performance. The artists also showed the diversity of Greenwich Village by asking the people who donated money where they are from. Surprisingly, this part of NYC was filled with people from all over the world, ranging from Europe, Australia, Africa, and Asia.

Works Cited:

“Village History.” The Greenwich Village Society for Historic . Web. 25 Oct. 2014.

“Greenwich Village: About Greenwich Village.” PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 25 Oct. 2014.

The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. “Beat Movement (American Literary and Social Movement).”Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 25 Oct. 2014.