Journal 2
EAST OF THE PARK
Today we explored East Harlem! East Harlem is mostly inhabited by Hispanics. Although in recent times parts of East Harlem are experiencing gentrification. To its residents east Harlem is called “El Barrio” which means the neighborhood.
Our first stop was the Museum of the City of New York. " The museum of the City of New York offers exhibitions that explore the city's complex history from its early day's as a Dutch colony to its present eminence" (Blue Guide of New York 376)
This museum was not like other museums we visited because we did not get a tour. Instead Prof Russo was adamant about getting upstairs to see a special movie. Although the movie didn’t begin yet we were allowed to walk around the museum for a few minutes. We were shown a micro- apartment which professor explained that was a new trend in NYC. Micro-housing are apartments that are 500sqft to 800sqft and they are being built all around the city to accommodate the increasing amount of young single people who are moving to NYC. Many young people want their own place in NYC but cannot afford the rent. So micro housing is supposed to accommodate to them. We even got to see a model of a 325sqft model which was very modern. Although I like this idea it’s not for me, I guess I would have to work over time to get a little bit more room.
After viewing the micro apartments we got to look around to see different exhibitions. One exhibition caught my attention which was called Activists in New York. The museum is quoted as describing this as exhibition online “Activist New York explores the drama of social activism in New York City from the 17th century right up to the present. In a town renowned for its in-your-face persona, citizens of the city have banded together on issues as diverse as historic preservation, civil rights, wages, sexual orientation, and religious freedom. Using artifacts, photographs, audio and visual presentations, as well as interactive components that seek to tell the entire story of activism in the five boroughs, Activist New York presents the passions and conflicts that underlie the city's history of agitation. “ An activist that caught my attention was the bicycle lane. Regular New Yorkers decided to dress up as clowns and protest in the streets of New York because they were tired of drivers driving on the bicycle lanes and not being cautious of bicycle rider. So these “clowns” stayed on the bicycle lanes protesting. This made me smile because it really shows how New Yorkers not only have a sense a humor but fighting for their rights.
After going through the exhibition the movie was starting. I immediately thought at first this is my chance to take a nap while professor Russo isn’t looking!! But then I realized it would be a terrible mistake to miss out on this film. As the movie was playing I decided to take notes. I earned that New York was bought for 24 dollars by the Dutch and that after the English took over they named it New York after the Duke of York. By 1783-1825 New York was a popular port center. When the artificially made Erie Canal was made it transformed New York in an industrial city bringing in factories and many people including immigrants. After seeing this movie it made me realize that professor Russo and Hey are geniuses. All this time they were making us see tour guide after tour guide and going into these random museums and parts of NYC made me realize how much I have learned. This move summed up everything that we learned so far about the history of NYC. From the invention of trains to buses and boroughs divided up to tenements and 9/11. This film made it so much easier for me to understand the history of NYC and what it is today; a melting pot of all different cultures coming together to make NYC so great. I really enjoyed the film.
After the film we left the museum to go to another museum called “El Museo Del Barrio”. " El Museo was founded in 1969 by community activist, teachers, and artists, mainly by Puerto Ricans" (Blue Guide of New York 376).
While waiting for our tour I saw a quote that represents this museum which is “A museum is a school: the artist learns to communicate. The public learns to make connections.” Our class was split into two and my group had a tour guide named Julie. She introduced herself and gave us a brief description of the museum and off we went outside to experience El Barrio. We walked around and Julie showed us some murals on apartment complexes and stores. Two murals that caught my attention was one where it showed different people who were all in a community called spirit of East Harlem by Hank Prussing. This mural showed Old Puerto Rican man playing dominoes and the Puerto Rican flag. Kids playing on the street. It showed that even though everyone in El Barrio aren’t family blood related and that they come from different parts they have formed a community to come together and that’s el barrio. Another mural I saw was in the community garden where it showed the famous Mexican painter Frida kahlo holding hands with Julia de Burgos a Puerto Rican poet. Julia explained that many Mexicans are moving into the area now that was predominantly Puerto Rican so this mural is to show that Mexicans and Puerto Ricans can come together to make a community instead of going against each other. Julie also explained that in 1969 a group of activists called “young lord” forcing city to clean up and fix East Harlem. Although, I don’t think Julie knew enough about the murals she showed us, I think she was very nice. However, I did not get the full experience or knowledge that I was hoping for because many questions we asked her she could not answer and I believe this was her first day on the job so she wasn’t informative. But After our little tour we were able to meet one of Professor Russo’s heroes named Jorge Vargas who is in a way a medicine man to the Spanish community. Mr. Vargas told us that for many years he has served the public with homemade remedies and herbs to cure their illnesses and he serves them with faith and hope. After our tour of El Barrio we went on lunch break. Although this food wasn’t very different from what I usually eat like all the other classes it was plentiful and cured my hunger pain.
After lunch our class headed to the Conservative garden of Central park where we had class time and talked about our feelings to the class so far and what we liked and did not like. After class we walked through Central Park until we reached the metropolitan museum of art.
"The building occupies 1.5 million square feet and its collections include more than two million objects, whose range includes the whole world and the entire sweep of human civilization" (Blue Guide of New York pg 326). This was my first time in the MET and I was astonished by how big it is. Our first stop was the punk rock exhibit. I never knew such an exhibit existed and I didn’t really understand the punk rock thing but thanks to my fellow classmate Kelsey she explained it all to me. The reason behind the punk movement and how celebrities kicked off the punk exhibit by dressing in punk attire. I thought punk was just a phase in your teen years and early 20s but I was mistaken and the punk exhibit changed my way of thinking. Although punk is not my thing I have to say now that I am a little informed on their movement and their attire I now respect it. This showed grungy fashion statements in leather and with safety pins and news papers. I was awe the whole entire time. After we looked at punk Professor Hey and Russo took us to look at different style of art works.
We looked at Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, Robert Rauschenberg, Picasso’s women of avenue, and Van Gogh’s starry night. Although I don’t consider myself an art person I have to say after this class I have appreciated art more. My favorite artist now is Robert Rauschenberg who mixed garbage with art which I think is so cool. I also admire Rothko who was a minimal artist who painted to art to make you feel something. Willemde Kooning another painter is an abstract expressionist painting a woman who looks ferocious. These artists are creating their own artistic language. I also like an artist by the name of Jasper John who had a precise form of art compared to his neighbor Rauschenberg. Both these artist were the forerunners to pop art. Pop art is described as wanting to show us art to show emotion to make us think and to get our reaction. Then we went to look at pop art where we saw Andy Warhol paintings where he used a silk screen process. Professor Hey described to us the 3 step process interaction in pop art: 1. Take a familiar object. 2. Make it unfamiliar. 3. Redefine the object.
We were then allowed to go on our own and explore the MET. Two interesting things I found was Perseus holding the head of Medusa and Imperial Caucasus Egg. I love Greek methodology so it was interesting to see it sculpted. The Caucasus egg was something very small that caught my attention. It was shiny and had so many jewels around it. I learn that it was made by Michael Perkhin in 1893 for Alexander III of Russia as a gift for his wife. The egg is decorated diamonds and rubies.
Over all I enjoyed the MET and I want to come back here again to really look at all different kinds of art. After exploring the museum our whole class met together again to leave. We were then told class is over and if we wanted we could go to karaoke. Since I have never done it before I decided why not let me try something new. It was so much fun and it was a bonding moment for us regardless of the fact that we were all sweaty, stinky, and tired.
THE WILD WESTSIDE
The wild Westside
Today was a good day. It wasn’t too hot such as previous class. We embarked on our journey to Time Square. Professor Russo led the way. While walking he showed us a Citibike stop. He explained to us that Mayor Bloomberg started up the Citibike program as a way to expand forms of transportation in the city, and he wanted the city to look more artsy like other European cities such as Amsterdam. He also explained that Mayor Giuliani wanted less traffic and less pollution in the streets so he started adding more chairs for pedestrians on Broadway.
Before being known as Times Square it was known Longacre Square and it was dominated by horse exchange, carriage factories and stable (Blue Guide of New York 217). In 1904 the subway arrived along with the New York Times, Whose publisher persuaded the city to rename the area for his newspaper, perhaps in competition with Herald Square who had a dominant newspaper called the New York Herald (Blue Guide of New York 217). In the 1940’s and 50’s Broadway shows flourished in Times Square. Today Times Square is now known for its Broadway and off Broadway experience and it attracted many producers, agents, restaurants, and hotels. As public transportation advanced it made the district accessible and investors realized the profit of theater as real estate (Blue Guide of New York 217). In the 70’s Times Square went bankrupt and as a result it was known as a dangerous neighborhood filled with crimes, drugs, and prostitution. It was so corrupt that not even police officers could control the violence that was happening. A group called the Guardian Angels were formed a result of the violence. The Guardian Angels consisted of regular everyday people who would patrol the streets and subways so citizen’s safety would not be jeopardize as they enjoy their community. In the late 1980s there was a turn-around in real estate. In the early 1990’s the government, nonprofit organization began to pull the neighborhood from its morass (Blue Guide of New York 218).
We continued on Times Square until we got to Rockefeller Center. “John D. Rockefeller Jr's resolution to make Rockefeller Center contemporary and innovative can be felt with every artwork and attraction” this was quoted on the Rockefeller website. We immediately noticed that the building was art deco styled. And that all 14 building was structured the same art deco style. There are many treasures in the building including art that is called new frontiers, which signifies mans development in spirit, science, industry and more. There are many special landmarks here as well including NBC studios which we walked through, radio city music hall, and Channel Gardens.
As we continued on we stopped in front of St Patrick Cathedral. “St Patrick Cathedral is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, a famous city landmark and a symbol of the success in New York of its Immigrant Irish Catholic Population” (Blue Guide of New York 254). I heard so many things about this church and was excited to see it but sadly the building was under construction. On the exterior of the door there are figures that represent saint. One saint in particular that I read about is St.Elizabeth Ann Seton which was my saint when I received my confirmation and she was right there on the door.
We then continued walking until we got to the museum of modern art. In 1929, Abby Rockefeller, Lillie P. Bliss, and Mary Sullivan rented a small space to create a museum. Although the show premiered days after the stock market crash it was still a success with 47000 visitors (Blue Guide of New York 260). MoMA is known for having abstract expressionism. Professor Hey was able to explain it to us by saying that abstract is something that cannot be seen and then expressionism focused on internal ideas. It focused on emotions and internal flows. Professor Hey then showed us different paintings that represented abstract expressionism which many were the same artist we have seen before in previous museums such as Andy Warhol and Van Gogh. Overall I enjoyed it and I especially enjoyed the fact that art was Professor Hey’s expertise and it was his time to shine. We saw many other artists before we reached my favorite kind of art, Modern Art.
After MoMA it was lunch time!! This class was the class I was waiting for to try Thai food for the very first time. We went to this delicious place called Yum Yum. After lunch we were full and ready to go.
So we took the train down to Harlem NY where we met our tour guide Jim. Jim explained to us the street we were on that is called Malcolm X Boulevard and before that it was named Lenox Avenue, and before that was called Sixth Avenue. Harlem was named after a Netherlands community Because of the large African American community presences Harlem is well known for having many churches. Jim explained that a lot of gentrification is happening in Harlem. He said before African Americans Harlem was a large Jewish community. Jim showed us the Riverting housing which is the 2nd oldest housing project and it’s now a public housing. The NY Harlem railroad in 1832 brought Irish immigrants, Germans, Italians, and then Jewish people to Harlem. Jim also showed us something I have never seen before which was a painting on hospital windows. This was the first in NYC imposing an artistic piece on windows. This mural was painted in 1935-1937 by Vertise Hays. We then walked around the corner to look at the exterior of old homes and see the area in which Madame CJ walker lived. We got to see the Harlem walk of fame which in my opinion looked very simple and not many African American Artists plaques on the ground and no artists of today’s generation (this saddened me). Jim then told us that Phillip Peyton is the reason why many blacks moved into the Harlem community as a business venture. After Jims History of Harlem we said our goodbyes and walked through Harlem. We were able to pass through the famous Showtime at the Apollo Theater. We then saw a statue of Harriet Tubman marching and it appears she has the slaves that she’s freed engraved on her statue. We then continued down to Morningside Park where we had a friendly competition up to the stairs. First time Professor Russo was beaten! I went up as fast as my little feet will let me. Although it was very painful I am glad to say I survived. We then raced to the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine before the museum was about to close on us. It is the fourth largest church in the world. It was laid out by Heins & La Farge in 1892 (Blue Guide of New York, 419). After this we headed to Columbia University Professor Hey’s Alma Mater. Although we didn’t get a tour we were allowed to rest on the staircase. We also go to the award ceremony where fellow classmate Emily beat Chris in a Gotham trivia and was awarded a bracelet Professor Russo got on his travels to Thailand. After our rest we were dismissed and I was glad because today was a lot of walking and a lot of stairs for afternoon.
Today was a good day. It wasn’t too hot such as previous class. We embarked on our journey to Time Square. Professor Russo led the way. While walking he showed us a Citibike stop. He explained to us that Mayor Bloomberg started up the Citibike program as a way to expand forms of transportation in the city, and he wanted the city to look more artsy like other European cities such as Amsterdam. He also explained that Mayor Giuliani wanted less traffic and less pollution in the streets so he started adding more chairs for pedestrians on Broadway.
Before being known as Times Square it was known Longacre Square and it was dominated by horse exchange, carriage factories and stable (Blue Guide of New York 217). In 1904 the subway arrived along with the New York Times, Whose publisher persuaded the city to rename the area for his newspaper, perhaps in competition with Herald Square who had a dominant newspaper called the New York Herald (Blue Guide of New York 217). In the 1940’s and 50’s Broadway shows flourished in Times Square. Today Times Square is now known for its Broadway and off Broadway experience and it attracted many producers, agents, restaurants, and hotels. As public transportation advanced it made the district accessible and investors realized the profit of theater as real estate (Blue Guide of New York 217). In the 70’s Times Square went bankrupt and as a result it was known as a dangerous neighborhood filled with crimes, drugs, and prostitution. It was so corrupt that not even police officers could control the violence that was happening. A group called the Guardian Angels were formed a result of the violence. The Guardian Angels consisted of regular everyday people who would patrol the streets and subways so citizen’s safety would not be jeopardize as they enjoy their community. In the late 1980s there was a turn-around in real estate. In the early 1990’s the government, nonprofit organization began to pull the neighborhood from its morass (Blue Guide of New York 218).
We continued on Times Square until we got to Rockefeller Center. “John D. Rockefeller Jr's resolution to make Rockefeller Center contemporary and innovative can be felt with every artwork and attraction” this was quoted on the Rockefeller website. We immediately noticed that the building was art deco styled. And that all 14 building was structured the same art deco style. There are many treasures in the building including art that is called new frontiers, which signifies mans development in spirit, science, industry and more. There are many special landmarks here as well including NBC studios which we walked through, radio city music hall, and Channel Gardens.
As we continued on we stopped in front of St Patrick Cathedral. “St Patrick Cathedral is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, a famous city landmark and a symbol of the success in New York of its Immigrant Irish Catholic Population” (Blue Guide of New York 254). I heard so many things about this church and was excited to see it but sadly the building was under construction. On the exterior of the door there are figures that represent saint. One saint in particular that I read about is St.Elizabeth Ann Seton which was my saint when I received my confirmation and she was right there on the door.
We then continued walking until we got to the museum of modern art. In 1929, Abby Rockefeller, Lillie P. Bliss, and Mary Sullivan rented a small space to create a museum. Although the show premiered days after the stock market crash it was still a success with 47000 visitors (Blue Guide of New York 260). MoMA is known for having abstract expressionism. Professor Hey was able to explain it to us by saying that abstract is something that cannot be seen and then expressionism focused on internal ideas. It focused on emotions and internal flows. Professor Hey then showed us different paintings that represented abstract expressionism which many were the same artist we have seen before in previous museums such as Andy Warhol and Van Gogh. Overall I enjoyed it and I especially enjoyed the fact that art was Professor Hey’s expertise and it was his time to shine. We saw many other artists before we reached my favorite kind of art, Modern Art.
After MoMA it was lunch time!! This class was the class I was waiting for to try Thai food for the very first time. We went to this delicious place called Yum Yum. After lunch we were full and ready to go.
So we took the train down to Harlem NY where we met our tour guide Jim. Jim explained to us the street we were on that is called Malcolm X Boulevard and before that it was named Lenox Avenue, and before that was called Sixth Avenue. Harlem was named after a Netherlands community Because of the large African American community presences Harlem is well known for having many churches. Jim explained that a lot of gentrification is happening in Harlem. He said before African Americans Harlem was a large Jewish community. Jim showed us the Riverting housing which is the 2nd oldest housing project and it’s now a public housing. The NY Harlem railroad in 1832 brought Irish immigrants, Germans, Italians, and then Jewish people to Harlem. Jim also showed us something I have never seen before which was a painting on hospital windows. This was the first in NYC imposing an artistic piece on windows. This mural was painted in 1935-1937 by Vertise Hays. We then walked around the corner to look at the exterior of old homes and see the area in which Madame CJ walker lived. We got to see the Harlem walk of fame which in my opinion looked very simple and not many African American Artists plaques on the ground and no artists of today’s generation (this saddened me). Jim then told us that Phillip Peyton is the reason why many blacks moved into the Harlem community as a business venture. After Jims History of Harlem we said our goodbyes and walked through Harlem. We were able to pass through the famous Showtime at the Apollo Theater. We then saw a statue of Harriet Tubman marching and it appears she has the slaves that she’s freed engraved on her statue. We then continued down to Morningside Park where we had a friendly competition up to the stairs. First time Professor Russo was beaten! I went up as fast as my little feet will let me. Although it was very painful I am glad to say I survived. We then raced to the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine before the museum was about to close on us. It is the fourth largest church in the world. It was laid out by Heins & La Farge in 1892 (Blue Guide of New York, 419). After this we headed to Columbia University Professor Hey’s Alma Mater. Although we didn’t get a tour we were allowed to rest on the staircase. We also go to the award ceremony where fellow classmate Emily beat Chris in a Gotham trivia and was awarded a bracelet Professor Russo got on his travels to Thailand. After our rest we were dismissed and I was glad because today was a lot of walking and a lot of stairs for afternoon.
LOWER MANHATTAN AND CAPTIVATING CHELSEA
Our adventure began in
City Hall with our tour guide. Joseph
François Mangin and John McComb, Jr. designed the building in the Federal style
with French influences. Our tour guide Deidra told us city hall was influenced
by Greek architectural style and you can see this in the building iconic
columns. City Hall was built in 1803-1812. Although I was in the back and could
not hear everything that Deidra said I managed to get some notes such that City
Hall stairs was originally clad in marble then New Jersey brownstone but because
of bad weather in the 1950s they shaved off the top layer and replaced it with
limestone and granite. In 1815 it was finished design and it cost about 10
million dollars in our day. It was built so that it was big enough to accommodate
the entire city Government. There use to be a prison in the basement while the
inmates waited to be sentenced. There was also a wine cellar in the basement.
Later it was decided that it can no longer take all of the cities government so
it was moved to another building. City hall had problems with fires A caretaker
was hired and he had a cottage right on top to in case of a fire. However in
1858 and 1917 city hall experienced two fires. In 1858 it was because of
fireworks and in 1917 British and war delegations fire started on the roof.
The statue on top was organically carved out of wood but then replaced. The New statue was made out of copper but it was then painted on to make it look like and marble and limestone. The courts moved so Mayo Bloomberg’s office is in half of the building. Across the street you can see the Woolworth building. City Hall was part of the City Beautiful Movement where many immigrants were moving to NYC and the city wanted to educate them and civilized them by building museums to know what city is like. Inside the building you see marble and plaster decorated throughout and leaves on a medallion. A statue of Georg Washington was standing tall in the entrance way. It was the exact replica of him with his height and features. People said that George Washington had charisma of men and because of his height he would walk in a room and be noticed. We went inside the Governors rooms and portrait gallery. After looking at paintings of past generals we were on our way to the next stop.
St Pauls Chapel that was built in 1764 in Georgeffe style. This was the oldest church in Manhattan. After the World Trade Center disaster, the chapel served as both a place of refuge for workers at Ground Zero and as a temporary memorial for visitor” (Blue Guide of New York, 77). After walking around the memorial we were off to see where the twin towers once was. After waiting in line and going through so many security checkpoints were finally inside the gates. There were two large water fountains that replicated of the twin towers the water is constantly flowing, which symbolizes that life goes on forever. We got to walk around the 9/11 memorial for a few minutes and to look at the names of those who we lost engraved in the fountains.
After 9/11 we left and passed by Trinity church where Alexander Hamilton was buried. Then we passed by Zucotti Park. This park was the main site during occupy wall-street and there were still some people there protesting and supporting occupy wall-street. We entered for a quick bathroom break in federal hall monument where there was the first city hall here. George Washington was sworn in office here. After our break we continued on our journey and passed by the Museum of the American Indian. This neo classical building was also part of the City beautiful Movement which inspired immigrants to wan to become American Citizens. We passed along Battery Park and learned the reason it’s called Battery Park is because Manhattan was fortified with the batteries of Guns.
After a long walk we took the train to Chelsea and had a quick lunch break at the Chelsea Market. Chelsea owes its name and approximate boundaries to Captain Thomas Clarke, a retired British soldier who bought a tract of land in 1750 and named the estate after the Royal Hospital, Chelsea, in London, a refuge for old and disabled soldiers (Blue Guide of New York 185). After lunch we went down to the meat packing district. This neighborhood has gone through gentrification in the 1990’s. People opened up galleries in Chelsea and it brought people here. Before it was just a bunch of factories. We then walked over to the highline which is an old rail road track converted into green. It’s bringing views to penthouses. Beginning in the late 1990s, a local advocacy group defeated proposals for demolition, and a park was constructed. It is1.6 miles between West 16th and West 30th Streets” (Blue Guide of New York 188). The class enjoyed a stroll through the Highline but then it was time to get off and go view art galleries. Professor Russo showed numerous of art galleries. Many of these galleries don’t make profit but are here to entertain and enlightened people through art. My two favorite art galleries were Sunsets and Pussy Gallery (genius idea to get people talking) and the Andrea Meislin Gallery.
“Marianne Boesky Gallery is pleased to present Sunsets and Pussy. This exhibition brings together two classic themes of summer wonder – so saccharine and ubiquitous we forget their awesome power. Spanning three generations, artists Ed Ruscha, Lucien Smith, Betty Tompkins, and Piotr Uklański each engage in the delight of exposing the clichéd beauty and banality inherent in these timeless images.”
“ The “Perchance to Dream” exhibition at the Andrea Meislin Gallery features the work of 25 artists who explore the significance of sleep and dreams through art, photography or film. The subjects in the photographs come from different walks of life: soldiers in Gaza (photographed by Pavel Wolberg) to freight-train hopping teenagers (photographed by Mike Brodie). Yet they all share this basic human activity: sleep. While some of the photographs depict peacefully slumbering subjects, the context of the photographs can be quite unsettling. Pieter Hugo‘s photograph, from his “Permanent Error“ series, presents one of many disenfranchised workers of Ghana’s Agbogbloshie electronics waste dump. Tim Hetherington’s “Lizama, Korengal Valley, Province, Afghanistan” suggests the vulnerability of a sleeping soldier in an Afghan war zone.” This was quoted by pdn.com about my favorite picture in the gallery
Our last stop of the day was at a book shop called Printed Matter. Although there many interesting books there I liked one called the American Trip. This book had 4 artists known for their provocative photos come together to make this book. It says that Candy Noland, one of the authors explores the work fragile balance between success and failure in the American Dream. Her work mostly shows the failure side. It shows the dynamics of celebration and denigration that determine whether one is inside or outside the bounds of social acceptance. This book although called the American dream is rebelling against the American dream with its provocative pictures.
After the store we were dismissed!
The statue on top was organically carved out of wood but then replaced. The New statue was made out of copper but it was then painted on to make it look like and marble and limestone. The courts moved so Mayo Bloomberg’s office is in half of the building. Across the street you can see the Woolworth building. City Hall was part of the City Beautiful Movement where many immigrants were moving to NYC and the city wanted to educate them and civilized them by building museums to know what city is like. Inside the building you see marble and plaster decorated throughout and leaves on a medallion. A statue of Georg Washington was standing tall in the entrance way. It was the exact replica of him with his height and features. People said that George Washington had charisma of men and because of his height he would walk in a room and be noticed. We went inside the Governors rooms and portrait gallery. After looking at paintings of past generals we were on our way to the next stop.
St Pauls Chapel that was built in 1764 in Georgeffe style. This was the oldest church in Manhattan. After the World Trade Center disaster, the chapel served as both a place of refuge for workers at Ground Zero and as a temporary memorial for visitor” (Blue Guide of New York, 77). After walking around the memorial we were off to see where the twin towers once was. After waiting in line and going through so many security checkpoints were finally inside the gates. There were two large water fountains that replicated of the twin towers the water is constantly flowing, which symbolizes that life goes on forever. We got to walk around the 9/11 memorial for a few minutes and to look at the names of those who we lost engraved in the fountains.
After 9/11 we left and passed by Trinity church where Alexander Hamilton was buried. Then we passed by Zucotti Park. This park was the main site during occupy wall-street and there were still some people there protesting and supporting occupy wall-street. We entered for a quick bathroom break in federal hall monument where there was the first city hall here. George Washington was sworn in office here. After our break we continued on our journey and passed by the Museum of the American Indian. This neo classical building was also part of the City beautiful Movement which inspired immigrants to wan to become American Citizens. We passed along Battery Park and learned the reason it’s called Battery Park is because Manhattan was fortified with the batteries of Guns.
After a long walk we took the train to Chelsea and had a quick lunch break at the Chelsea Market. Chelsea owes its name and approximate boundaries to Captain Thomas Clarke, a retired British soldier who bought a tract of land in 1750 and named the estate after the Royal Hospital, Chelsea, in London, a refuge for old and disabled soldiers (Blue Guide of New York 185). After lunch we went down to the meat packing district. This neighborhood has gone through gentrification in the 1990’s. People opened up galleries in Chelsea and it brought people here. Before it was just a bunch of factories. We then walked over to the highline which is an old rail road track converted into green. It’s bringing views to penthouses. Beginning in the late 1990s, a local advocacy group defeated proposals for demolition, and a park was constructed. It is1.6 miles between West 16th and West 30th Streets” (Blue Guide of New York 188). The class enjoyed a stroll through the Highline but then it was time to get off and go view art galleries. Professor Russo showed numerous of art galleries. Many of these galleries don’t make profit but are here to entertain and enlightened people through art. My two favorite art galleries were Sunsets and Pussy Gallery (genius idea to get people talking) and the Andrea Meislin Gallery.
“Marianne Boesky Gallery is pleased to present Sunsets and Pussy. This exhibition brings together two classic themes of summer wonder – so saccharine and ubiquitous we forget their awesome power. Spanning three generations, artists Ed Ruscha, Lucien Smith, Betty Tompkins, and Piotr Uklański each engage in the delight of exposing the clichéd beauty and banality inherent in these timeless images.”
“ The “Perchance to Dream” exhibition at the Andrea Meislin Gallery features the work of 25 artists who explore the significance of sleep and dreams through art, photography or film. The subjects in the photographs come from different walks of life: soldiers in Gaza (photographed by Pavel Wolberg) to freight-train hopping teenagers (photographed by Mike Brodie). Yet they all share this basic human activity: sleep. While some of the photographs depict peacefully slumbering subjects, the context of the photographs can be quite unsettling. Pieter Hugo‘s photograph, from his “Permanent Error“ series, presents one of many disenfranchised workers of Ghana’s Agbogbloshie electronics waste dump. Tim Hetherington’s “Lizama, Korengal Valley, Province, Afghanistan” suggests the vulnerability of a sleeping soldier in an Afghan war zone.” This was quoted by pdn.com about my favorite picture in the gallery
Our last stop of the day was at a book shop called Printed Matter. Although there many interesting books there I liked one called the American Trip. This book had 4 artists known for their provocative photos come together to make this book. It says that Candy Noland, one of the authors explores the work fragile balance between success and failure in the American Dream. Her work mostly shows the failure side. It shows the dynamics of celebration and denigration that determine whether one is inside or outside the bounds of social acceptance. This book although called the American dream is rebelling against the American dream with its provocative pictures.
After the store we were dismissed!
IMMIGRANT NEW YORK (LOWER EASTSIDE, THE BOWERY, LITTLE ITALY, AND CHINATOWN)
As I got on the train
one last time to meet the group I was a little saddened that this was our final
classed. We all became so close and as much as I hated the walking and the
burning sun I am really going to miss this class. I thought today was going to
be an easier day but Professor Russo and Hey crushed that hope for me after
they informed us we will be doing a scavenger hunt in NYC on our own in groups.
They quickly separated us into groups and handed us our mission to be completed
at a certain time.
However before the scavenger hunt we went on our way to Essex Street Market to meet up with Jim from our previous tour in Harlem. Jim taught us that the Market was built originally as an attempt at getting pushcart merchants off the streets, but it has since expanded into an international marketplace where foods from around the world are sold. We even had the chance to quickly walk through the Essex Street Market and I got to see a nice variety of cheeses. Jim informed us that the entire market is 4block long. The Lower East Side was the densest community in the world because of the wave of immigrants that flocked to the area because, although it was dirty, it was affordable. Before the bridge the east side was populated with a lot of Jewish people. The Lower East Side is now undergoing a lot of gentrification. Jim then said that the Williamsburg Bridge helped clear a lot of the density of the Lower East Side, and many of the Jewish immigrants migrated across the bridge to Williamsburg, Brooklyn this also why the bridge is called the Jew’s Highway. We continued on and saw a place called The Neighborhood Playhouse, which is a highly renowned school for actors. Jim even told us that many famous actors have come through its doors, such as Diane Keaton.
We then continued on our Journey to Henry street settlement. Founded in 1893 by Lillian Wald “Wald's philosophy establishes Henry Street as a national leader in service to children, families, and the poor.” Henrystreet.org. I liked learning about Lillian Wald because she was a nurse that made a difference and was the founder of the community nursing. She was also part of the group that founded Columbia University. Lillian trained nurses to go into tenement and community. Today this is known as visiting nurse service of New York.
We then continued our Journey following Jim to Seward Park. Across from this park was a building called “Forward” that once was home to a popular Jewish newspaper but now converted into luxurious apartments. Jim told us that there are 4 radicals on the Forward building. As we walked through Seward Park we went into China town. Jim gave us a little history about the Chinese immigrants saying that in 1870 there were only 200 Chinese people in NY. By 1882 there 2000 Chinese because of the Chinese exclusion act. By 1900 there 7000 Chinese people who came from San Francisco and only 200 of them were women. Today there are 9 Chinese communities in the metropolitan area. Jim also told us that there is something called the “Tong” Was known as the Chinese mafia. This was created when many people were not welcoming of Chinese people and the “Tong” in a way helped their people. We then ventured into Little Italy.
It was then in Little Italy we said Goodbye to Jim one last time and Professor Russo told us to start are scavenger hunt. I was in group A and we had to go to Wagner Park and look at World Financial Center, Irish Hunger Memorial, and Poets house.
World Financial Center- this is an office building that is home to various companies such as Merrill lynch and American express. By 2014 it will be renamed to Brookfield Place
Irish Hunger Memorial- "The Memorial represents a rural Irish landscape with an
abandoned stone cottage, stone walls, fallow potato fields
and the flora on the north Connacht wetlands. It is both a
metaphor for the Great Irish Famine and a reminder that
hunger today is often the result of lack of access to land." bpcparks.org
Poets House - Founded in 1985 by poet Stanley Kunitz and arts administrator Elizabeth (Betty) Kray, Poets House has created a home for all who read and write poetry. The library was modeled on The Poetry Library at the Southbank Centre in London.
I think I was the only non native New York City person and had no clue where I was or where I was going. Thankfully I was able to rely on my teammates. We ran around NYC like crazy searching for every place and only stopping to take a picture and then leave to make it to Congee Restaurant by 3pm. I thought I was going to pass out in the street of New York I couldn’t feel my legs. This was the worst part of the day because we didn’t have enough time to look at the sites and learn the history. Just thinking about that day reminds me of the pain. This scavenger hunt defiantly tested us because tensions raised and I did not see how we all were going to make it. By 3pm were still in the middle of nowhere so we took a taxi cab and were the last group to arrive at Congee. I must say... I am proud of myself because I can’t believe I made it through that scavenger hunt because all I thought about was quitting.
After cooling down and having a few glasses of water I was back to my normal self. Although I was not looking for to eating Chinese Food from my bad experiences at local Chinese stores in Long Island I was very impressed. I am glad I did not skip out on this meal. The food was delicious I ate everything that came to the table. To this day I still have no clue of what I ate but I loved it. I did not want to leave, I had fallen in love with the Chinese noodles and I just wasn’t ready to say goodbye to them.
After Congee we had our last stop at the Tenement Museum. It was made in 1863 where many immigrants lived. We were split into groups and instead of being the same old typical tour guide museum it was not. My group pretended we were Italian immigrants. Professor Hey was our papa and Julie was our Mama. Our group was all girls. We went to an old apartment where a young girl name Victoria Confino and her family used to live. An actress was there playing as Victoria Confino and we got to ask her questions and learned about her history. It was very entertaining. Victoria was Jewish and came from Greece with her family. She lived in the tenement building. She was taken out of school in 2nd grade because her parents did not see it as necessary. Her family experienced a lot prejudice from Ashkenazi Jews because she did not speak the same language as them and that they ate rice.
The Tenement museum was very nice and I enjoyed it very much. It was different. It also made me forget about that scavenger hunt. At last it was time to say goodbye to Professor Russo and Hey! It was a pleasure knowing them and getting to know my classmates. Who would’ve thought that 7 days of class can change your life completely!
However before the scavenger hunt we went on our way to Essex Street Market to meet up with Jim from our previous tour in Harlem. Jim taught us that the Market was built originally as an attempt at getting pushcart merchants off the streets, but it has since expanded into an international marketplace where foods from around the world are sold. We even had the chance to quickly walk through the Essex Street Market and I got to see a nice variety of cheeses. Jim informed us that the entire market is 4block long. The Lower East Side was the densest community in the world because of the wave of immigrants that flocked to the area because, although it was dirty, it was affordable. Before the bridge the east side was populated with a lot of Jewish people. The Lower East Side is now undergoing a lot of gentrification. Jim then said that the Williamsburg Bridge helped clear a lot of the density of the Lower East Side, and many of the Jewish immigrants migrated across the bridge to Williamsburg, Brooklyn this also why the bridge is called the Jew’s Highway. We continued on and saw a place called The Neighborhood Playhouse, which is a highly renowned school for actors. Jim even told us that many famous actors have come through its doors, such as Diane Keaton.
We then continued on our Journey to Henry street settlement. Founded in 1893 by Lillian Wald “Wald's philosophy establishes Henry Street as a national leader in service to children, families, and the poor.” Henrystreet.org. I liked learning about Lillian Wald because she was a nurse that made a difference and was the founder of the community nursing. She was also part of the group that founded Columbia University. Lillian trained nurses to go into tenement and community. Today this is known as visiting nurse service of New York.
We then continued our Journey following Jim to Seward Park. Across from this park was a building called “Forward” that once was home to a popular Jewish newspaper but now converted into luxurious apartments. Jim told us that there are 4 radicals on the Forward building. As we walked through Seward Park we went into China town. Jim gave us a little history about the Chinese immigrants saying that in 1870 there were only 200 Chinese people in NY. By 1882 there 2000 Chinese because of the Chinese exclusion act. By 1900 there 7000 Chinese people who came from San Francisco and only 200 of them were women. Today there are 9 Chinese communities in the metropolitan area. Jim also told us that there is something called the “Tong” Was known as the Chinese mafia. This was created when many people were not welcoming of Chinese people and the “Tong” in a way helped their people. We then ventured into Little Italy.
It was then in Little Italy we said Goodbye to Jim one last time and Professor Russo told us to start are scavenger hunt. I was in group A and we had to go to Wagner Park and look at World Financial Center, Irish Hunger Memorial, and Poets house.
World Financial Center- this is an office building that is home to various companies such as Merrill lynch and American express. By 2014 it will be renamed to Brookfield Place
Irish Hunger Memorial- "The Memorial represents a rural Irish landscape with an
abandoned stone cottage, stone walls, fallow potato fields
and the flora on the north Connacht wetlands. It is both a
metaphor for the Great Irish Famine and a reminder that
hunger today is often the result of lack of access to land." bpcparks.org
Poets House - Founded in 1985 by poet Stanley Kunitz and arts administrator Elizabeth (Betty) Kray, Poets House has created a home for all who read and write poetry. The library was modeled on The Poetry Library at the Southbank Centre in London.
I think I was the only non native New York City person and had no clue where I was or where I was going. Thankfully I was able to rely on my teammates. We ran around NYC like crazy searching for every place and only stopping to take a picture and then leave to make it to Congee Restaurant by 3pm. I thought I was going to pass out in the street of New York I couldn’t feel my legs. This was the worst part of the day because we didn’t have enough time to look at the sites and learn the history. Just thinking about that day reminds me of the pain. This scavenger hunt defiantly tested us because tensions raised and I did not see how we all were going to make it. By 3pm were still in the middle of nowhere so we took a taxi cab and were the last group to arrive at Congee. I must say... I am proud of myself because I can’t believe I made it through that scavenger hunt because all I thought about was quitting.
After cooling down and having a few glasses of water I was back to my normal self. Although I was not looking for to eating Chinese Food from my bad experiences at local Chinese stores in Long Island I was very impressed. I am glad I did not skip out on this meal. The food was delicious I ate everything that came to the table. To this day I still have no clue of what I ate but I loved it. I did not want to leave, I had fallen in love with the Chinese noodles and I just wasn’t ready to say goodbye to them.
After Congee we had our last stop at the Tenement Museum. It was made in 1863 where many immigrants lived. We were split into groups and instead of being the same old typical tour guide museum it was not. My group pretended we were Italian immigrants. Professor Hey was our papa and Julie was our Mama. Our group was all girls. We went to an old apartment where a young girl name Victoria Confino and her family used to live. An actress was there playing as Victoria Confino and we got to ask her questions and learned about her history. It was very entertaining. Victoria was Jewish and came from Greece with her family. She lived in the tenement building. She was taken out of school in 2nd grade because her parents did not see it as necessary. Her family experienced a lot prejudice from Ashkenazi Jews because she did not speak the same language as them and that they ate rice.
The Tenement museum was very nice and I enjoyed it very much. It was different. It also made me forget about that scavenger hunt. At last it was time to say goodbye to Professor Russo and Hey! It was a pleasure knowing them and getting to know my classmates. Who would’ve thought that 7 days of class can change your life completely!
Final Impressions of NYC
I do not regret taking this class! This was a great learning experience and I encourage others to take this class. I have learned the history on NYC and now I am excited to continue my journey in learning about NYC on my own. I have been to places where I would have never been. I have learned things and now have an appreciation of everything of NYC. This was a once in a lifetime experience and I am truly blessed to be a part of this. This is something I will treasure with me forever.