on the roof
A BUTCHER'S #14
A BUTCHER’S hook/look (Cockney rhyming slang)
Ludlow living
The door is locked now with a loud obnoxious alarm, but the roof used to be accessible and it was always good just to go up and hang out for a bit. At the turn of the last century, visiting nurses used to move from building to building across the roofs to save time and effort going up and down the stairs, whereas in our day they were used by the local dealers to evade the police - very convenient as none of the doors were locked. Sometimes it got pretty busy up there.
Although we didn’t have a pigeon coop on our roof, there were at least five in the neighborhood and in the evenings the different flocks would be circling around, being called by their owners (à la Brando)
With its neutral color scheme and angled planes this photo has a certain abstract cubist feel….
still life
A former self on the roof with one of my first paintings.
About 10 years ago, I got an email from the Edythe & Eli Broad Museum in Michigan confirming if I’d painted this piece. I sent them this photo - they loved it. The painting is in their collection (unless they’ve had a garage sale!) The museum itself is a fantastic shark like building by Zaha Hadid 2012
rooftop hopping
delving
This is the photo that was in my mind when I mentioned the nurses short-cutting across the rooftops. I just couldn’t find a photo credit for it. At first I mistakenly thought it was a Jacob Riis photo (he took many photos exposing the dire conditions in the Lower East Side. With a bit more looking I find that it was taken by Jessie Tarbox Beals, who turns out not only to be a pioneer of photography but the first published female photojournalist in the US, among many other firsts. Check out these fantastic photos of her on the job and Read her story - her father invented the portable sewing machine!
If you think that everybody now has a phone, also has a high powered camera on them at all time, it’s hard to imagine hefting this daunting 50 pound 8x10” camera around - requiring real nerve, determination and strength.
Now picture these scenes with the other photographer set up taking these photos of her
shot of color
I seem to have gone down more of a historical road this issue, interesting but not much color. So, here’s a photo I took from the Manhattan Bridge as I biked accross in the early evening - love it!
A wealth of fascinating info and visuals! Lansing is now on my road trip list.