Tim Schreier on finding his visual muse in New York City.

“New York City has to be one of the greatest ‘canvases’ to practice photography; the neighborhoods, art, architecture, events and, of course, the people make this city and its neighborhoods a dream come true for a photographer. The ‘East Village’ and Lower East Side are truly unique places. The diversity of cultures in such a close proximity is my favorite element to this part of the city.”
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Adrian Fussell on following his camera around the city.

“A lot of people exclusively shoot at dawn and dusk because of the lighting. I always try to carry my camera when the sun goes down. Winter skies are some of the most beautiful, and with the reflection on Trump Soho and the lighting behind the silhouettes downtown, it looked like there were two suns. “
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jdx

Last week, we brought you a photo essay by jdx, a community contributor to The Local. His images seemed to resonate with many of The Local’s readers, who offered a range of reactions about the images and jdx’s commentary on the East Village, its past and its future.

“In a neighborhood that is progressively morphing to costly glass and sheetrock,” jdx wrote of an accompanying image of First Houses. “Someday these untouchable buildings might be the only trace of an East Village that has any sense of its own history.”

Those sentiments struck a chord with many readers.

Pauline Zubin wrote:

“not only are the pictures interesting and worth several looks. the description of each one was informative,
so often we walk by these very things and not take notice. i want to thank the photographer for making them beyond noticeable.

Guillermo added:

“These are very inspirational, poetic, and neolithic. We want more!!!”

Phil Vale said:

“The photographer has found angles that restore the allure of a dangerous, artistic and inspirational East Village, where people gathered to see cokeheads, not Cakeshops, and the most exciting thing on the street wasn’t a new food van. Poverty and violence mingled with music and sex while the wealthy, protected and curious went slumming for an experience. We get another glimpse of that here.”

Join the conversation: What does the work evoke for you?

jdx, a community contributor to The Local East Village, discusses working the streets with a camera.

“Most of these images are captured on the streets of the East Village with a mobile, edited in-device and uploaded. A lot of their inspiration is sourced from writing and literary studies, album covers and underground novels, beat poetry and outsider art. I try not to get hit by cars.”
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Vivienne Gucwa on photographing the art and architectural details that exist overhead in the East Village.

“The East Village is home to some brilliant historic and contemporary architecture that often gets overlooked since it is above the street level. Some of this architectural detail can be viewed simply by looking up.”
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Vivienne Gucwa discusses photographing the graffiti and wall art inside the iconic Mars Bar for a recent essay.

“As a haven for artists over the years, the walls of Mars Bar were a constantly evolving canvas. With its closing imminent, it felt like an appropriate time to document the elements of Mars Bar that made it a truly unique part of the East Village community.”
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Raquel Marvez Sandy Adames.

Raquel Marvez Mr. Adames displays a tattoo that he wears in honor of his late father.

Sandy Adames has been working the deli at the Associated Supermarket on East Eighth Street and Avenue C for seven years.

He knows many customers by name, and can handle the most complex deli orders with a meticulous attention to detail. But most people don’t know that Mr. Adames cannot read or write.

“When I was 11, three years after my parents and two sisters moved from The Dominican Republic, I had a car accident,” said Mr. Adames, as he recalled being struck by a taxi cab while crossing the street.

Mr. Adames, who’s 29, sustained an apparent brain injury and has had problems reading and writing ever since. Frustrated by the difficulties of learning, Mr. Adames dropped out of school and began working to make ends meet for his family.

A supervisor at the supermarket, Candido Morel, said Mr. Adames’s sunny disposition has endeared him to deli customers.

“Clients love Sandy because he is always happy,” Mr. Morel said.

And a co-worker, Randol Vasquez said: “He is dedicated and finds a way to stand out.”

But Mr. Adames dreams of one day being able to read and write. His ambition, he said, is to work on computers.

“I would love to provide better for my wife, daughter and the baby that is on its way,” he said.

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR. Click on each photo for detailed information about the image.

Raquel Marvez is a field director and senior producer at The Generations Project. This post was the winning entry in a photography contest during the National Association of Hispanic Journalists Region 2 conference, which was recently held at NYU Journalism.

A look back at the images produced by the members of The Local East Village Flickr Group during the snowiest January in New York City history.

Vivienne Gucwa

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The members of The Local East Village Flickr Group share their images of yet another snowy day.

Kelly Samardak

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For more than three decades, Marlis Momber has chronicled the changes that have occurred in the East Village and the Lower East Side – Loisaida. She reflects on 30 years of observing a community in transition.

“I hope we will learn from this having lost against gentrification, but it was inevitable,” said Ms. Momber in her East Fourth Street apartment as she sorted through photos, such as this image from 1986. “There’s this sense now that we must reconnect — preserve and continue — or all the earlier stuff will be for naught.”
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John Galayda on photographing the Kitty Nights burlesque show at Bar on A in the East Village.

“It’s an ordinary Sunday night at a bar in the East Village, and a group of
regulars begin to trickle in through the door. But instead of sitting at the
bar, these regulars — Creamy Stevens, Minnie Tonka, Anja Keister, La Maia, and Fem Appeal — sit near a dimly lit stage and apply glitter to their busts,
lotion to their legs, and makeup to their faces.”
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The members of The Local East Village Flickr Group share their images of a neighborhood suddenly snowbound.

Dan Nguyen

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Vivienne Gucwa on photographing the East Village at night.

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