Art
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only the noisy cacophony of people and engines, but also the quiet, dark moments
of reflection as the lights soften and memories fade.”
“Urban Dance” features 10 Queens-based photographers and local pics
depict Jackson Heights, Astoria, Woodside and Long Island City street scenes.
Gotham-based photos, like Paul Kessel’s piece, “Saturday,” capture a moment in
the orthodox community of Williamsburg, while Corinne Spector’s “Tomorrow Will
Be Different,” reveals a quiet yet disorienting scene in Casablanca, Morocco. And
Arien Chang’s image of a flooded playground in Havana, Cuba, is a metaphor for
a strained and broken system, according to Gonzalez.
Local creative Hazel Hankin’s “Banana” shares a lighthearted street scene
in Jackson Heights, while David Obermeyer’s “Gary Indiana” takes you into the
ruined interiors of a building.
If you take a gander at Johanna Warwick’s “Under the I-10,” you’ll discover how the
government cut through a black residential neighborhood in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in
the name of progress. And New Yorkers will most likely appreciate the meaning behind
Isabelle Scheider’s “Future Present,” which signals how myriad problems caused by gen-trification
can transform once thriving hubs like Manhattan. She captures closed storefront
businesses that can’t afford the rents and the reflections of coveted brick buildings that
are vulnerable to demolition by developers. Sheri Lynn Behr’s “No Matter Where” exposes
the reality of security cameras and the presence of surveillance on our every move.
“How do we retain our humanity while we live in a mechanical, ever-evolving
beast of our own creation? The city can offer freedom and a better way of life,
yet often becomes the bearer of dreams denied,” Bennette said. “Dreams of the
city bring us into the urban landscape.
“And, how we survive is our Urban Dance. Like cities, ‘Urban Dance’ changed
as it came into being,” he continued. “The tone altered as we looked at the many
photographs sent to us from cities across the world. My natural inclination is to
see the positive, however the work submitted was far from optimistic —perhaps
a direct reflection of our current times.”
All these images look as if they could have been taken here in our borough,
according to Gonzalez, who added, “We are a microcosm of everything that is
happening in today’s world. After all, this is Queens.”
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