From the very beginning, I had no idea what photographer to pick. So many unfamiliar names were presented in front of me, it was almost overwhelming. However, I chose to let the works of the photographers speak to me to ultimately dictate my choice.  

For me, the native Brooklynite Helen Levitt (1913-2009) presented a photograph that was the hardest to look away from. She took this photograph in 1940 in the streets of New York City with the purpose to capture young New Yorkers in their natural environments. It was one of the many photographs that was in her book A Way of Seeing: Photographs of New York (1965) and one of the handful of her photographs to make it into the Museum of Modern Art as her first work: “Photographs of Children.” Aside from the attention it caught from the public, it caught my attention for very specific reasons I could only fully understand when I looked closer into the visual elements and meaning of the photograph as a whole. 

At first glance, “kids dancing” by Helen Levitt seems like a simple, straight-forward photograph taken in the gleeful moment of two children carelessly dancing together. It’s the type of photograph that would paint a smile across anyone’s face who lay their eyes on it. On the other, when taking into consideration the visual elements and design of the photograph, the message brought to us is not so innocent. 

Regardless of the fact that this photograph is void of color, you can still tell the differences in color of the children. You can recognize that the girl on the left is white and the boy on the right is black; however, this difference connects to others shown in other aspects of the photograph. For instance, the textures and colors of their clothes as indicated by the photograph differs between the two children. The girl is wearing bright, smooth, and neat looking clothes that demand the dominance of the viewer of the photograph, while the boy is wearing rough, worn textures with darker colors. Furthermore, there is a hard boundary of natural light that seems to the engulf the dancing girl, but abruptly stops from the shadow of a building just short of touching the boy. 

Turning away from the juxtaposition found in the photograph, the beauty of everyday like in New York City is also present in this photo through the visual elements and design. Every part of the image holds in clear focus as we can see every detail of the children in the foreground but also the iconic New York stoops in the background. Without knowing about the photograph, one would be able to tell that it was taken in New York solely because of this. Different types of lines balance out this photograph beautifully. While the lines create geometric, hard shapes in the background outlining the characteristics of the New York buildings, they highlight the smooth, organic shapes of the children’s bodies in the foreground. Furthermore, the angle the photograph is taken from allows the viewer to feel like a bystander observing these children for themselves like Helen Levitt probably was. Moreover, Levitt could have included more people in the background walking on the street if she didn’t care about their presence, but she deliberately did not want anyone else but the two children in her frame. The framing keeps all that is important to the message/meaning of the picture.  

When considering the visual elements and design of the photograph, it is then easy to piece together the deeper meaning of this photograph. Like so many of the other photographers that basically only have one race in their photographs focusing on their separated experiences, this photograph is inclusive to both races. Levitt’s “kids dancing” touches upon certain economic and social barriers (or lack thereof) that are presented in the city environment. The contrast of light and darkness when it comes to both the light (or lack of light) shining on these children, the brightness and texture of their clothes, and the color of their skin relay the divided lives that the two races experience when it comes to privilege in the social and economic spheres. The white girl can be seen as the more privileged/well off child, while the black boy can be seen as the lesser privileged/well off child. Regardless of their visual difference, these children are dancing together in harmony without judgement, resentment, or hate. They are too young to recognize the barriers those before them have but up between each other over time. They don’t recognize the differences in their clothes and probably the differences in their skin. They show innocence and   instinctual human connection that living in this city forces us to address and strive for. In my experience, this is very true to the lives that those growing up in New York experience living side by side with others in a manner not seem anywhere else in the world. Being the most diverse place in the world, it is typical for people of all races to have learned to live in harmony with respect to each other. This photograph is an amazing representation of this aspect of New York as it is shown through the innocence and impulsivity of children. 

Taking all of these underlying meaning of dynamics of New York City into consideration, it is clear to see why I chose this photograph and the photographer herself. Having sifted through her collections, Helen Levitt was truly a photographer who withheld the squalor, bustle, and beauty of everyday life in New York City. This can be seen through “kids dancing” because it is my belief that if you want to really dig deep into the city’s ‘secrets,’ you have to go to the streets and catch it in raw, genuine experiences and encounters.  

Looking back, there was a photograph I could not choose but wished I did. This photograph is “Nightview, New York” by the photographer Berenice Abbott. It was taken in 1932 and printed in the 1950s on gelatin silver print. This photograph, as many of Berenice’s photographs, surprise me with the amount of clarity captured for the technology of the time period. The strict geometric design of this photograph attracted me as it holds relevance to the grid structure and landscape of Manhattan as a whole. Furthermore, the luminosity of the lights within the photograph dominate the attention of the eyes in beautiful, individual clusters throughout the photograph.

I’ve always considered myself a “New Yorker”; however, at the start of this semester I’ve never felt more undeserving of the name. Regardless of the fact that I’ve lived my entire life in Queens, there were so many aspects of the city I couldn’t believe I was missing out on this whole time. This is probably partially because of the fact that I always despised the city because of its pollution and overcrowding. The opportunities we got within this semester to explore some of arts that the city had to offer really opened me up to the many aspects of the rich heart of the city.

As I traveled throughout the city more frequently than ever before, I found myself unexpectedly falling in love with the city as a whole. Just a few months ago I wanted to run away from the city! However, as I would take in new settings, people, art, and opportunities, the awe that would envelop me from time to time would block out any discomfort around me. I have always been blind to so many beautiful aspects of the city you can’t find anywhere else in the world. Therefore, if i’m being completely honest, I’ve been taking them for granted far too long. Coming to the close of the semester, my pride in my city with its diversity community, beautiful scenery, rich art, advanced science, and complex history has never been greater. I can only hope to share these moments of awe and recognition with the people I love and demonstrate the ideals I find within this city wherever life takes me.

Having learned everything about I have about photography of New York and its relation to our city culture, I was inspired to do the same. As I would travel throughout NYC and the subway, I would find myself with random urges to photograph what I saw. Here are some of my amateur iphone photographs and videos:

Sources:

“7 Lessons Helen Levitt Has Taught Me About Street Photography.” http://erickimphotography.com/blog/2014/06/06/7-lessons-helen-levitt-has-taught-me-about-street-photography/

Dikant, Thomas. “Helen Levitt: 10 Photographs.” http://web.fu-berlin.de/phin/phin25/p25t1.htm.