This multi-layered West Village wall caught my eye on one of my NYC walks a few years ago because it was a kind of historical map of the building's occupancies. The reflections in the blue glass of the modern cars parked on both sides of the street were disrupted by the missing panel, and the revealed window beneath looked into the dim past. It also served to obscure most of my reflection as I shot the reference photos. The adjacent storefront on the right is also the result of several different surface treatments over time to "update" it, and like the brick building on the left, the upper stories retained a much earlier appearance.
This is another kind of "above and below" like that of the juxtaposition of surface life and the subways below ground that fascinates me as an illustration of the accumulation of human endeavors over the years, decades and centuries. I was equally attracted to the depth of layers visible inside the building on the right, where behind the reflections in the front window were interior rooms and walls and in the distance, a glimpse out the back door and across the next street over.
For those of you in the NYC & Connecticut areas, my work is included in a group show running through October 31st at Project 3W57 in Manhattan
My wonderful gallery representation: LewAllen Galleries, Santa Fe, NM
And as always, you can also contact me directly by email: info@sethtane.com and follow my occasional photo posts on: Instagram