[Photo by Q. Sakamaki]
The Times features photographer Q. Sakamaki today, who has a new book out on Tompkins Square Park. (I did a short piece on it for Curbed today, too, and there was quite a bit of feedback on the topic...)
Upon arriving in the city in 1986 he settled in the East Village, where he was alternately charmed and horrified by what he found. Dilapidated and abandoned buildings lined the streets. Entire blocks were filled with little more than rubble and bricks. Heroin was sold in candy stores, and gunshots sounded in the night. In the morning he sometimes spotted the bodies of people who had been killed or had died of overdoses.
Also, in this week's issue of the Voice, Lynn Yaeger goes on a walking tour of the neighborhood with Sakamaki.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Looking at the Tompkins Square Park riots in black and white
"In the morning he sometimes spotted the bodies of people who had been killed or had died of overdoses."
ReplyDeleteOk, this vision of the 80's East Village as a Mad Max-esque apocalyptic nightmare has truly gone far enough. Sure, it wasn't the best neighborhood back then, sure there were murders, crime, but it was in no way to worst neighborhood in the City as it always appears to be depicted. hell, it wasn't even the worst neighborhood in Manhattan. When I was a kid, if you were hispanic and grew up in the East Village, it was like the suburbs compared to my neighborhood. Now folks walk around like Hey man look at me I'm a "survivor" of the 80s East Village. I'm cool. Give me an f-ing break dudes. I guess it helps them get laid. All I know is we used to come down to LES to pick up spanish girls and see cool bands. never once had a problem down here. the only problems I ever had down here are with the aging "I been here since the 80s" crowd who seem to think they own the joint.