I walked around New York City for a week and snapped photographs of things that particularly caught my eye. I realized by the end that these pictures all coincided with one another. I typically take many pictures in general of things that I can eventually look back on whether it be memories, or just a moment in time I did not want to forget. I think one aspect of New York City that people do not generally capture is the serenity of the city. When people think of New York City, the first thing that comes to mind is the millions of people and tourists, the constant feel of commotion. After all, it is the city that never sleeps. In all these pictures, the specific detail of each picture captured the serenity and peacefulness of the city that I do not think most people focus upon.
The first picture, I took of a “mural” that was being shown in Washington Square Park. The artist depicted the New York City nature scene and it really perfectly illustrated how animals play a big role in NYC. Whether it is a flock of pigeons or a dog walker trying to walk 6 dogs at the same time, animals add a more suburban feel to the busy hectic New Yorker lifestyle.
The thing about New York City that attracts the serenity aspect is the grand diversity of buildings. Whether it be in the daytime or night, as my pictures show, the city has tremendously built architectural designs that make each building unique from one another. The picture of New York City at night was taken from the Staten Island Ferry which is what I take to get home when visiting my parents. From a far, the buildings all look the same, just differing in height. As you can tell from my other pictures, each building is completely different. The design, color, location all contribute to the uniqueness of each building. Every time I pass by a building, I automatically think and wonder of the kind of people live in the buildings. Downtown, swarms with young people, entertained with the hustle and bustle of the city. The Upper East Side, is a more extravagant area to live in where a lot of family and elderly live. Despite the location aspect, the diversity is still extremely present. Half the time, when walking past these buildings, you cannot even tell if the person is a New York City resident or if they are simply a tourist. Having the availability of meeting people from literally all over the world adds to the peaceful serenity feel that makes New York City so fascinating to others.
Details is another thing that makes New York City so powerful. In the last three photos, I was able to capture a moment in time where I was truly at piece. First, sometimes we take for granted where we live. In this photograph, I am simply grabbing lunch with a friend but the way we were helped at this restaurant was really welcoming. Aside from that, the restaurant goes out of their way to individually put fresh flowers on the table. This might not seem like much to many, but not every country is grateful to be able to be economically content to provide these accommodations. The second photograph is of an artist’s stand. Walking through any street in New York, you are bound to bump into an artist selling their work on the street. Stopping to admire each artists sense of sputum and punctum really shows you the diversity around you. Lastly, the rainbow. This photograph was taken at a local park and the rainbow emitting by the fountain ties in all my posts back to serenity. I feel grateful and very at peace when living in an area that even though is always receiving some sort of bad news, can still make you feel so at home that you never want to leave. All of these seven photographs have depicted greated examples of punctum and studium. I used to look at a picture and just observe the picture as a whole quickly. Now, I take the time to observe the specific detail and background information of every picture. These small details have helped me interpret the New York City scenic life much better. Overall, these seven photographs helped me personally convey the message of serenity in New York City. Despite the fact of living in a city with millions of people, moments like this make it seem like that is not the case.
