The theme for our zine revolves around our identities as New Yorkers. Our scrapbook theme is chronologically organized from sunrise to sunset to night life in the city.
As New Yorkers, we are able to gain the ability to not only travel around the different boroughs: but also to travel around no matter the time of day. We are able to view the same scenery, the same landscape, the same environment; in both a new light and a new perspective. We are able to view the blue skies, the fleeting clouds pass during the day time; we are able to view the sunset, and view the change of colors almost as if it occurred through a flick of switch as the sky changes from a bright baby blue to a calm orange to a rich purple that almost engulfs you; all this happening throughout the hustle and bustle of city life. As we go through our day, we are able to encounter the same yet different scenery as we make our way either around the Macaulay Campus or our college campus. We are able to see billboards, bridges, and even the city life itself with its tall building bright lights and its most delectable food at any time of day: as if these places are waiting for us, waiting for us to witness them in all of its glory no matter what time we may stumble upon them.
This scrapbook zine will take viewers throughout the day of a New Yorker. We discussed a derivé in which each of us took a walk around the city, with no specific destination in mind and reflected on our experiences. Many of us don’t take walks to simply enjoy our surroundings, as school and work take up a large portion of our time, so we often feel that walking with no end goal is a waste of precious time. Our walks, however, were filled with nostalgia, zen, and healing. We also discussed our neighborhoods’ public art and initial appreciation, or lack thereof, for monuments, murals, and sculptures. This class allowed us to analyze both museum art and public art and how both have the ability to reflect on the past, portray the present, and imagine the future.
