THE QUEENS
JUNE 2020
‘Jackson Heights Strong’
Espresso 77 owner creates vibrant artwork after boarding up storefront
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
aacevedo@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
If you pass by Espresso 77, a cafe and
wine bar that doubles as a gallery for
local artists, you can’t help but stop and
admire their colorful display, proclaiming
“Jackson Heights Strong.”
Th e vibrant artwork was created by
Afzal Hossain, the owner of the popular
cafe located at 35-57 77th St., aft er they
were forced to board up their original
glass window display with plywood.
On the night of Tuesday, May 26,
Hossain said two individuals tried
to break into the cafe by smashing the
windows with a brick. Julie Nymann,
Hossain’s wife, said they got calls from
neighbors who saw the attempt and called
the police. Hossain spoke with police that
night, but hasn’t received word that any
arrests have been made, as the two individuals
fl ed before anyone arrived.
Th e incident occurred days before the
Black Lives Matter demonstrations for
George Floyd began in New York City.
Hossain didn’t think it’d be necessary to
board up the cafe before the incident, as
they felt it brought beauty to their neighborhood.
Still, Hossain believes “everything
happens for a reason.”
“It does make me angry, but I said,
‘I cannot be angry. I need to calm
down,’” Hossain said. “So I immediately
thought about doing something beautiful.”
Nymann said they were able to
fi nd an emergency glass repair to fi x
it the next day, but decided to board it
up for the time being since the cafe has
remained closed for several weeks due to
the COVID-19 health crisis.
Th ey’re still not sure when they’ll
re-open, as they want to keep their staff
and customers safe. But when Hossain
and Nymann posted about their shattered
window on social media the next
day, David Heatley, a cartoonist who lives
in the neighborhood, immediately volunteered
to help create the artwork and suggested
they make it a community project.
“I think of their cafe as central to the
neighborhood,” Heatley said. “I drew a lot
of my fi rst books sitting there. I had a gallery
show there. I feel very connected to
them, and feel they’re an important part
of the Jackson Heights community.”
And so they began painting the next
day. A small group of kids, teens and
adults from the neighborhood joined
Hossain and Heatley to help paint the
vibrant display. Hossain said the artwork
“came organically” in a “fl ow of angriness
and happiness,” as they drew outlines of
trees, fi sh and more abstract fi gures with
a red, green, blue and yellow color palette.
“Th is kind of came about for unfortunate
reasons, but it was a way to continue
being a space for creativity,” Nymann said.
Espresso 77 has hosted live music, art
shows, poetry and a space community
members can use as their “living room,”
as Hossain puts it, for 12
years now.
“We’re a community
business, not a big business,”
Hossain, who emigrated
from Bangladesh
more than two decades
ago, said. “People are
already coming and taking
photographs. It sends
a good message.”
Photos courtesy of Espresso 77
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