"HOT TIME, SUMMER IN THE CITY..."

hot time, summer in the city, and the recent 104 degree temperatures sent many New Yorkers towards a time honored respite ...

all photos ©Ken Brown

'BIG STUFF'

BIG STUFF!  I recently met a young man in Bushwick who was clambering down from a ladder after finishing an almost block long painting of a row of teeth.  He is one of many new street artists who work regularly on a scale that was completely unimaginable to almost all artists in the past ...

all photos ©Ken Brown

"JR" IN THE BRONX

Recently, JR, the inimitable French street artist known for his large scale photo portrait projects around the world made his presence felt in the Bronx.  I've admired his work for years and especially appreciate his strong humanitarian instincts. Working in areas of cultural conflict, he uses an approach he refers to as "artivist" to engage communities in the process and the dialogue. Wonderful stuff!

check out his ted talk to learn more...

http://www.ted.com/talks/jr_s_ted_prize_wish_use_art_to_turn_the_world_inside_out.html

all photos ©Ken Brown

BARBER SHOPS OF NYC

Recently, I found it was time to drag my shaggy self in for a little trim.   I had noticed in my files of NYC storefronts that barbershops, beside their idiosyncratic flair, consistently used the red. white and blue barber pole theme. I knew it had something to do with a historical connection to surgery. A little Googling about confirmed that in medieval times, beside haircutting, barbers performed surgery and the red and white colors referred to blood and bandages. Eventually 

the surgical services were separated from the tonsorial arts and it is believed that by the late 19th century the addition of blue to the barber pole color scheme (in America) was done as a patriotic homage.   Happy 4th.  

                                 all photos © Ken Brown