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This multimedia project aims to highlight how music, film, and photography capture gentrification in New York City and how gentrification continues to change the socio-economic makeup of neighborhoods across the city. Gentrification can be exquisitely highlighted in three particular areas: the Lower East Side, Brooklyn, and Harlem.
Gentrification or Rebranding?
A Personal Perspective
As the old residents leave and sleek window panes take their place the rent-stabilized tenants remain. We remain to see what happens when nobody else rent is protected. As we pay 800 a month, the people moving in can somehow pay three thousand.
My family dinner, born in 1995, is now replaced with a gelato stand.
My childhood pizzeria, born in 1989, is now a Starbucks. As I walked down St. Marks to find my childhood gem no longer in sight, I know that no amount of java or venti lattes can replace the establishment that gave me my first bite of true New York city food before I could even walk.
I miss my home. But my home is no longer there. It has been replaced with coffee bars and overpriced scones
My parents moved to the East Village in 1980. But I know that one day I must say goodbye, for the rents in my neighborhood do not welcome me to stay but force me to leave and become a part of the gentrification of yet another neighborhood.
So is it gentrification? Or is it rebranding?
I don’t know. Maybe it’s both. All I do know, is that the East Village I call home cannot be found by taking the L train to 1st avenue, cannot be found by walking around Tompkins Square Park, but can only be found in the memories of those here long enough to remember when The Starbucks on St Mark’s use to be Nino’s Pizzeria.
Link to app: https://studio.code.org/projects/applab/hIpL8turgFaPDT-C_8uWBgqJ-KDzl1mRV-4haIzxgZo
Link to more mobile-friendly app : https://studio.code.org/projects/applab/teH-upEcvdPguU3oZFNay-iM0oGuSmPI7IJHzQ3WB2M
Throughout history, women’s image have been defined by social constructs that objectify their body as well as define beauty standards that puts other women below for not having the same qualities. However, artists in particular have been creating artwork that not only breaks the traditional image of women, but also empower women in the expression of their/the female body. This project brings together 4 paintings that depict nude women and how visual analysis, context from the artist, and a bit of history and comparison to help portray the ways in which the portrayal of women brings about empowerment, redefining standards of beauty, and breaking away from subordinate roles while having liberty in their bodily expression. The app created for this project allows the user to read these analysis though they are also able to simply admire and observe the work and make their own interpretations while browsing.
Update: Fixed first image text error and added link to mobile-friendly app (Original app – mouseover function for info boxes; Hard to use for mobile phones. Mobile app – click function for info boxes).
New York City is a metropolis of culture, especially music. New York City is home to many concert venues, each of which has its own history and character. While being in New York has affected these venues, these venues have also affected New York. Some venues have been cultural meccas for historical cultural scenes (like CBGB and the punk scene), some have been centers for social change (like Max’s Kansas City and sexuality or The Town Hall and gender roles), and some have been mirrors for the changing economics of the areas they inhabit (like Carnegie Hall or Webster Hall). My project analyzes how various concert venues in New York City became more than just buildings for musicians to play in and their effects on New York City’s history and culture.
Map: https://www.zeemaps.com/view?group=2780881&x=-73.989514&y=40.761541&z=6
Works Cited: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nHueKaX5LIxAdwV3qMPcw_3bUGeYFLAVtgOn2Pc3EN4/edit?usp=sharing
Link to Google Slides Presentation
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/
1mEDjqVJ5iMcQDfagVlxAeBL4PTx_xFZaBXwCaExQXvk/edit?usp=sharing
About the Project
The Manhattan grid is an integral part of the identity of New York City and I chose to focus on the history of this massive construction to further understand the city I live in. My interest was to explore the history of Manhattan and through research, I learned about the origins of the name “Manhattan” and about the people who lived on the island way before European arrival. What was interesting about the research process was coming across the “Mannahatta Project,” which was developed by landscape ecologist Eric Sanderson and introduced me to the further history of the island of Manhattan. The project recreated the Manhattan of 1609 with its many hills, valleys, and streams. The model is an important part of my project because it showcases the evolution of Manhattan over the years supports the idea of the Manhattan grid being a work of art within the city.
Introduction Slide
Before and after picture of Manhattan – Manhattan in 1609 vs. present day
Commissioners Map of Manhattan – Grid System Display
Time Lapse Video – Manhattan from 2016 back to 1811
I recently re-watched the 1998 film The Truman Show, in which a man’s life is unknowingly filmed and broadcast to the world with no interruptions. His entire life is built around this show – his town is just a large set, his wife and friends are actors, and, of course, the items he uses are paid product placements. The premise of the film itself raises questions about what constitutes art, and those questions can be turned to current reality TV and its celebrities. The television show that the film is about airs without commercials, so its only revenue comes from scenes like the following, where characters suggest that Truman try a mundane project that is sure to be better than what he had before.
In this clip (up to 0:40), we see a point where the show could be meaningful art – Truman attempts to have a serious conversation with his wife, something that is real to him, and this substance could help viewers reevaluate their own lives, consider new perspectives, have the difficult conversations the’re dreading because if Truman can do it, anyone can. But this potential is undermined by the wife’s refusal to approach this conversation – she is only an actress, unwilling to discuss her show marriage with any seriousness – so she does what she does best, point a product label at the camera and say a slogan with as much conviction as she can muster.
I do think art can be effectively used in advertising, lending beauty to a price tag, but it is common to a failure at this, with advertising and cheap attempts at making money getting in the way of anything meaningful.
A Doll’s House, Part 2, a Broadway play written by Lucas Hnath sets in the John Golden Theatre. The initial presentation of the play for the audiences came from the set design. The square shaped stage allows us to view as if we are looking down into a doll house. However, this isn’t a typical doll house. The emptiness of the stage shows exactly how “empty” and plain the Helmer family is in the play. There are only four chairs, one table stand, and one flower pot; there’s no family portrait, pictures, or feelings of warmth. The Helmer’s home lacks that “family” feeling as a result. Those were just the very first impressions of the play. As the play begins, Nora Helmer comes back home after leaving her family for fifteen years. Although the first encounter between Nora and Anne Marie seems pleasant and nostalgic, the conversations thereafter between Nora and each of the characters were filled with heat, anger, and resentment. Each character told their story following Nora’s abandonment and how that affected their life after. Torvald was heartbroken and felt betrayed; Emmy grew up without maternal love, thinking that her mother passed away; Anne Marie had to choose between her own family and her loyalty towards caring for the Helmer family. This goes to show that one person’s action impacts others in many ways. In A Doll’s House, Part 2, the negative consequences destroyed the family dynamic, while at the same time, conveying a deep message about “family”. The overall sense that I walked out of the play with, was a sense of gratefulness towards my own family, knowing that they’re there.