The Days Before the Techno-Fascist Dystopia

Duke Riley. Photo by Luna Park.

The New York Times recently compared NYC to the “techno-fascist dystopia” of Blade Runner, in part due to the city’s over-abundance of advertising. As we’ve noted before, even though most of New York’s payphones can’t be used as for their stated purpose, they still have a valuable (to some) function: advertising space. These days, payphones serve no purpose except to distract us. But it wasn’t always this way.

Thinking about the opportunity to put his work on the side of a payphone, Duke Riley told us, “Payphones played a major role in the world I grew up in. When I was 15, I got my first pager. The payphone was your autonomy, your anonymity, your meeting place, sometimes your sleeping place and, for 25 cents or a calling card, your connection to the rest of the world. It was my internet.”

We never knew how good we had it. Thank you, Duke, for turning at least one payphone back into a space for connecting to the world, even if there’s still no dial tone.

Why Are You Posting? What Are You Sharing?

Legacy by Aida Wilde. Photo by Luna Park.

There’s a famous line from Banksy about how advertisers want to make you feel that, “all the fun is happening somewhere else.” On social media, too many of us end up in constant competition with each other to say, “All the fun is happening wherever I’m at.” When we join that rat race, we are doing the advertisers’ jobs for them. Thanks, Aida Wilde, for this reminder.

“‘Legacy’ was born as a reaction and response to the ever-rising popularity of selfies and influencers on popular social media platforms. Most of the photos have nothing substantial to offer other than a great "duck face" or perfectly coiffed & heavily coloured-in eyebrows with a well-curated, pastel matched wardrobe (or in some cases, the lack of). One couldn't help but wonder if this is as good as it can get out there? The "vessel" is ever changing, nothing remains the same and the memory of beauty fades...” - Aida Wilde

Our work is often about putting one small message out into the world to counter the vast sea of judgmental messages being throw at us. It’s just one poster, but maybe it results in one fewer “perfect” selfie. Go build a legacy. It shouldn’t be too hard. After all, most of us are distracted practicing our duck face.

Remembering Don Leicht, Street Art Innovator

In Memory of Don Leicht by Icy and Sot. Photo by Luna Park.

The global street art community owes a lot to Don Leicht, an innovative painter, sculptor, and stenciler with four decades of painting in public space. Earlier this year, Don passed away at the age of 74.

We felt that the best way to pay our respects to a legendary figure would be on the street, so we asked his friends Icy and Sot to help. It just so happened that they were already thinking of creating something to memorialize Don, a portrait of the artist that pays homage to Don’s style through both the pixelated portrait and the inclusion of his iconic space invader stencils.

“Don was a true artist and a wonderful person. He always created works that reflected the times with strong messages. Active since the 70’s until he passed away, he didn’t care if his works were going to be shown in a gallery or a museum, he just loved creating art. We are so lucky to have met him and spent some time together. We've gotten so much inspiration from him!” - Icy and Sot

Thank you to Icy and Sot for this beautiful memorial. Thank you to Don for getting up, helping to jump-start a movement, and inspiring a still-growing legacy of artists on the street.

Fun in the Face of Adversity

Martha Cooper with her poster. Photo by Luna Park.

As New York City’s payphones continue to disappear rapidly, we’ve been reaching back out to a few friends and past collaborators for one last shot to install their work in a piece of iconic New York City street furniture. Martha Cooper really got into the spirit with this piece, which matches not only the weather but also includes a payphone in the background! The photo brought to mind this famous line from Joseph Campbell:

“As you go the way of life, you will see a great chasm. Jump. It is not as wide as you think.”

- Joseph Campbell

Or, to put that another way…

“The guy sailing over the slushy street seemed appropriate and not only because of the weather. Let’s say he represents survival in the face of adversity.”

- Martha Cooper

While Campbell’s advice feels a bit serious, the guy in Martha’s photo looks like he’s having some fun! That’s something we all need these days.

And we had some fun with this one. Martha joined us for the installation. She’s always up for an adventure. But then she sprang a surprise on us: She had invited some friends to stop by to see the poster. That’s when the strangest thing happened. We turned our heads and chatted for no more than a few minutes, and suddenly the booth had been tagged up! So unexpected.

But that’s how things go when you install in public space: You don’t have the guarantee that anything will last, not even through lunch.

Martha Cooper and some well-timed vandals. Photo by Luna Park.

New York Will Live

Molly Crabapple. Photo by Luna Park.

This will be our last update for 2020. Handing it over to Molly Crabapple:

“This is a portrait of a street musician in Soho that I drew in the first days of the pandemic, when a thousand people a day were dying in New York City and the streets were silent except for sirens. This violinist, playing mostly for no one, was a reminder of the city’s indomitability. That we would, and always will, live again.”

Not much else to say. Mask up. Stay safe. Mind your mental health. When this is over, and it will be over, let’s throw some wild parties.