Project Name: Through A Different Lens: NYC Gems
Essential Questions: What can we find in New York City when we stop to look? What kind of history and stories are hiding in plain sight?
Statement of Purpose: Photography has always been an interest of mine that I’ve never had enough time to pursue, so I want to take advantage of this time I’m being given to focus on a photography study. Since the pandemic started, I’ve been doing a lot of walking, whether it’s with my friends, family, or even on my own. I’ve noticed how easy it is to walk from place to place in NYC and miss what we are surrounded by. Even though I have lived here my whole life, there is still so much I don’t know. There are still so many places, especially landmarks, that I’ve never visited and are known for their beautiful architecture. My goal from this project is to discover as many hidden jewels of New York City as I can learn the history behind them, and teach others how much beauty can be found in the buildings we’re surrounded by when we look up from our phones.
SOME Places I Plan to visit:
Roosevelt Island Smallpox Hospital & Cat Sanctuary, The Freedom Tunnel, Hidden Tropical Forest, Keith Haring ‘Once Upon a Time’ Bathroom Mural, The Sphere – 9/11 Memorial, Aids Memorial, Berlin Wall in Midtown, Grand Central Terminal (Whispering Gallery), Marilyn Monroe Subway Grate, Midtown Waterfall, City Hall Station, “Please Don’t Tell”, Museum of Innocence, Jeffrey’s Hook Lighthouse, The Marriage of Money – East River, Little Bronze Underground Subway Sculptures (are in school as well), Hare Krishna Tree, Shinran Statue, New York Herald Monument, U Thant Island
- Action Item Area: Connections/Qualitative Research
- Reason for Item: To help frame my project, ground my project with someone who has more lived experience in the topic of my project
- Notes: Interview people who specialize in NYC history/landmarks/photography small business owners of hidden gems / tour guides of NYC / talking to a NY muralist/artist or NY photographer
- Resolution: Developed questions / interviews TBD
- What about NYC is special to you?
- Why did you choose to start a small business in NYC/choose NYC as your subject?
- How does your [business/art/tour] contribute to others’ experience of the city?
- Action Item Area: Books
- Reason for Item: I need solid secondary sources to bolster the primary source of the location
- Notes: Secret New Yorker: An Unusual Guide, The 500 Hidden Secrets of New York, Photographing New York: Field Guide, Site: Atlas Obscura
- Resolution: I ordered the books from Amazon
Key learning goals:
- Greater insight into photography, more skilled with a camera (angles, lighting, composition, etc.)
- Keener observation skills about surroundings (historical significance / better appreciation for cultural influence/deepening writing skills about less tangible aspects of my environment)
- Learning to balance objective research with subjective personal experience/the experiences of others: learning about these places objectively while exploring my own feelings & interviewing others
Sample week:
Monday – preparing for the week; researching and gathering info about locations for that week, compiling research & bios about locations, checking the weather & calling locations about visits (making adjustments as needed); journaling expectations and personal response to the history/culture
Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday – travel & adventure days, journaling in notebook and taking pictures along the way to location and at location, interview days (unless accommodations need to be made)
Friday – organizing info from the week: typing up journal entries/interview material, downloading photos, writing/adding to entries if I didn’t finish them, polishing research & bios about locations I visited
Documentation Plan
I plan to use “The Social Media Process” posts by creating an Instagram account to document and organize the photography I take throughout the project. While I will be taking photographs and learning composition with an actual camera, I will also be taking quick Instagram snaps on my phone to document my progress and later be able to process my experience of the project as a whole. I also really like the idea of creating a mood board every week with a compilation of photos with possibly an excerpt from my journaling. I plan on posting 1-2 times per week.