Pictures

Hey everyone so these are the photos from last class- enjoy!

The Picture Exercice

In the last class we got the assignment to "freeze" a picture in the Washigton Square Park and to imagine a possible dialogue before or after that scene. Below is what my " imagination" created.


The Picture: In Washington Square Park, on a bench, a couple, sitting next to each other, both with coffees in their hands, he was looking ahead like watching the people passing by, and she was facing the other way, with her eyes lost, like thinking with open eyes and not being able to perceive what she was seeing at that moment. They were not holding hands.

Dialogue:

She: Today it is nice outside; it’s been so long since we took a walk in the park. I am really enjoying it.
He: You know I took you out in this specific park with a reason today. I have an important announcement to make.
She: What do you mean in this specific park?
He: Well you know….this is where we first met….
She: Yeah, from that point of view it is a special park. So what is the big news?
He: I got promoted at work.
She: Congratulations! When? Why didn’t you tell me right away? What took you so long? This is wonderful, I am so happy for you. We have to celebrate tonight.
He: Thank you. But there is one problem though….huh… I have to relocate; I have to move to L.A, this Monday morning.
She: Why? I mean….. do you really have to go right now? And… for how long?
He: I have already signed the contract for 2 years upfront.
She: What is going to happen to us?
He: I want you to come with me.
She: But you know I have to finish my college.
He: Yes, but you can transfer to LA.
She: You know how much NYU means to me….I have 2 more years to go…you could have told them that you need to think for a few days.
He: You know that this is a big opportunity for me and I can not afford to miss it. It is no need to rush; we still have a few days to figure this out….
She: Yeah ….we have…..but not too many options to choose from..…..

She is now watching the park, but although her eyes are open, she doesn’t sees what is going on in front of her eyes because her thoughts are so far away. She is trying to understand what is going on, what will the future look like without him; she thought they would always be together no matter what…..life is full of surprises. She is disappointed; the man she loves is leaving her. He is moving without even asking for her opinion or even thinking of other possibilities, without even care about her. He is suddenly a stranger for her.

Andre Kertesz (Extra blog 2)

No matter where I go, Washington Square Park seems to follow me. While in LA over spring break I went to the Getty museum to see an excellent photo exhibit of Graciela Iturbide. While at the museum I noticed that there was another photo exhibit by well known photographer Andre Kertesz. Kertesz was born in Hungary but did most of his photography in New York and Paris. He worked for big fashion magazines, yet loved street photography and photographing every day happenings.
As I walked through the exhibit I was stunned to find a photograph of the Washington Square Arch. After further research I learned that Kertesz photographed the Park every day from the balcony of his apartment, located at 2 Fifth Avenue. He wanted to capture every day happenings in the park.
I found this so exciting because being in LA I never thought I would run into anything having to do with Washington Square Park. I guess it just shows how the park has influenced so many and how that influence stretches across the world, both literally and figuratively.

Tamiment Library

The visit to NYU's collection at the Tamiment (sp?) Archives in Bobst wasn't my favorite. I felt like everything the collection had to offer could have been found (plus more) at the New York Historical Society. The only thing that really sparked my interest was the collection on the Triangle fire and the Ladies Garment Workers Union articles and photographs. But that's really only because I think isolated and esoteric New York history is interesting (I like personal histories rather than the history of the city as a whole.)

I got extremely bored when we started discussing the grassroots movements, rallies and protests in the neighborhood and the park. I'm not a huge fan of that kind of history. I also didn't like how the collection catered ONLY to leftist politics. Granted, I am an extreme leftist thinker myself, but I think in discussing union history it's incredibly important to have a historical collection and preservation that caters toward the backlash of union organization and leftist politics. The collection was lacking because I saw no knowledge or interest in the RESPONSE TO left politics. It seemed like a huge blindspot to me because I think in researching things such as protests and unions it's key to understand WHY there are such things and in that understanding you must understand the other side, understand WHAT and WHY people are organizing and protesting in the first place.

But maybe I'm the only one who thought such...

TimeKeeper

JP Morgan Collection in Dubai, UAE

I just thought it was interesting that a modern version of The Morgan Collection is being shown in a modern-conscious global city in the Middle East.

http://www.eyeofdubai.com/v1/news/newsdetail-19400.htm

Fales and Tamiment

I held off on posting about Fales because I wanted to include a single post that would discuss the great collections that NYU has to offer. The Fales collection has an immense amount of literature and manuscripts, many dating back to the very beginnings of New York itself. It's a truly incredible resource and it's a pity that many NYU students don't know about it. The archives house some exclusive collections that can't be found anywhere else, even in the NYPL and the Morgan, for NYU's notable alumni often prefer to contribute to the school's collection specifically. In both collections, I found items relevant to my project and definitely plan on returning. In the Fales collection, there were a few books about 'bohemia' that the speaker presented to us, along with a wide variety of magazines published right on the square. I personally found the Art Spiegleman maps to be the most fascinating, but there were also entertainment magazines of the time that listed musicians and their upcoming concerts. I plan on going through these magazines in my study of music on Washington Square! The Tamiment Collection also had a bit to offer in terms of music, but from a different perspective, as they have a book of protest songs written for rallies around Washington Square. The Tamiment Collection is more politically oriented, but since music can be used to support causes as well, I'm sure that I'll be able to find some things there. Research Research Research!

NYHS

The race through mindblowing winds to get to the New York Historical Society was well worth the troubles. Upon entering, I didn't think much of it. It lacked the grandeur of the Met, or the literary significance of the Morgan. However, the wide array of pamphlets instantly caught my eye. There weren't only lectures, but musical events as well? It won me over. Of course the exhibit was fascinating. There were many fascinating items connected to Washington Square Park and the surrounding area. the Volumes of addresses and phone numbers didn't fascinate me as much as the sketches and blueprints. It's interesting to see what the initial layout plans were for the park. I began to wonder whether the layouts for the new renovations going on today would also find their way to the New York Historical Society some day, and whether another class, decades later, will be musing over our plans the way we mused over those of old.

NEW YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY

I couldn't help but feel a connection to Nick's post on the New York Historical Society as I harkened back to my own frantic dash to 170 Central Park West the other day. Rising from the subway stairs just minutes before class was supposed to start, I had to sprint down 77th Street from Broadway in my winter coat and scarf. I could feel the sweat accumulating in the insulation of my coat and a cramp quickly forming on the left side of my abdomen, but I decided it was worth it for the sake of learning, or for the sake of not being marked absent. Luckily I made it to the Historical Society just in time to stamp my signature on the attendance sheet. Although I found the presentation given by the two excited young librarians interesting, I wasn't completely convinced that it was worth the sweat stains I had created in my new shirt. Pitty stains aside, I was really engaged by a couple of the items laid out for us on the table, especially the book listing all the people who had died of yellow fever. I found this book to be creepy, intriguing, and almost humorous in the way they had the book laid out. It was simply a book filled with pages and pages of dead people's names. No explanation of who they were or what they had accomplished in their lives or anything. Just lists of names. I'm sure there was an introduction in the first couple pages of the book, which I didn't look at, but I'm curious to see how it explains the purpose of its content. Would it have read something like, "If you're looking for baby names, we've got the book for you!" or "Always wondered if your neighbor really died of yellow fever? Well now you can look up their name in this edition of YELLOW FEVER, the EPIDEMIC! Great topic of gossip for your next dinner party." I can't imagine what would happen if a book like that came out today. I have a feeling "SARS AND THE DECEASED: A FULL LIST OF NAMES" would not review well.

I wonder what books and ephemera people in the future will be curiously looking at when we're long gone. This class has made me appreciate history in a new way. It's exciting.

Today, March 5th 2008 we had a class visit to Tamiment Library & Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, Bobst Library, session with Michael Nash, Head Librarian. It was a very interesting meeting for me. Among the vast collection that he presented us regarding labor archives, one particular event captured my attention: the Triangle Fire from March 25, 1911. This is supposed to be a well known event in the history of Washington Square Park, yet unknown to me, being an international student. The first thing that capture my interest relating this issue, was the year 1911; the last three digits "911" reminding me of "9/11" tragedy - World Trade Center. I don't know if there is any connection between the two events, or just a coincidence but that was the first image that came into my mind and that is why i want to say a few words about this tragedy.
On March 25, 1911, a fire started in the Triangle Shirtwaist Company, killing 146 workers that were caught up on the top floors of the building during working hours. Their death sparked a new flame in New York City. The pleas of the working class for better factory conditions, long ignored, were finally heard after the Triangle deaths. Those deaths stimulated a guilty concern over the state of factory safety, a concern which called for action, for change. A Investigating Comission was built, which over 4 years, examinated thousands of industrial establishments, listen to hundreds of witnesses, held public hearings, and finally pushed through the legislation needed to reorganize the New York City labor and fire departments and to insure safer factories for the working class.
This tragedy had a great impact at that time in history. It followed the World Trade Center tragedy in 2001 which had even a greater impact in today's society. Although this last event's consequences are not yet well defined, it surely is a great "stain" in the NYC's history.

blog post 1

So I've never really been much of a blogger, but yesterday was such an amazing day i thought it would be the perfect opportunitty for one of our three blog posts. The weather yesterday- Monday March 3rd was so spectacular- warm, light breeze, just a few clouds in the sky- essentially the perfect day for hanging out in Washington Square Park. Yesterday was the first day the rennovations to the park have really affected me.
Growing up in Los Angeles I have had a lot of trouble adjusting to the weather of New York and when I find a perfect Spring day like Monday was, I can't resist putting on my flip flops and heading to the park. I took the time we got off from class and headed to the park with my copy of Republic of Dreams. I was planning to find a nice lawn spot and enjoy the sunshine. Unfortunatelly I found that there really is no lawn! There are a lot more benches and seating in the small areas that are still open, but it was really sad not to be able to cosy up to my spot by the dog park- last year I found the perfect spot where I could watch the dogs play, but manage to stay upwind of the dog pee smell. This park that I have always thought of as so wonderfully dynamic, diverse, and all around exciting appeared as this sad crowded concrete area with loud construction sounds in the background.
Resigned to the truth of the park I packed up my book and headed east to Tompkins. I love Tompkins square park, but it is nothing like Washington Square. It doesn't have that same feeling- that kinetic buzz- that one feels all around Washington Square. The only history I feel in Tompkins is the junkies who have mastered- as Professor Keith Miller eloquently dubbed- the "druggie lean" where the person is so tipped over he/she is about to fall, but somehow manages to stay up.
I know that when the park is renovated I will be really happy and will love the new park! I understand that it was an important thing that needed to be done, but right now on my perfect spring day- I miss my park.

Not quite blue

After Jason Bauman prefaced his presentation with his credentials, which include work in the LGBT urban community, I was excited to hear what he would have to say about the beat generation -- as a modern man with legitimate experiences in today's New York City culture. Unfortunately, he relied on a sophomore-feeling powerpoint and excerpts from his subjects' works, which were placed in front of each, individual audience member. He simply directed my attention to the latter materials and read aloud what I was already reading; I will, however, admit that I hadn't up to this point known anything about Diana di Prima or Bob Kaufman. Although he introduced to me two important figures whose works are often missing from common knowledge of the generation/movement, it wasn't enough.

One man in the audience shared my frustration. Several times he felt the need to raise his hand to prove himself better versed in the subjects than was Jason. Unfortunately, as I learned from a few classmates afterward, he instead proved himself obnoxiously vain to his peers, the audience. And while I felt similarly about his interruptions (I don't think he actually asked questions for Jason to answer), I knew he also sensed the lacking of time-worthy subject matter. A part of me feels guilty for empathizing with this man; the rest is certain that I wasn't satisfied.

I had reasonably high expectations for the presentation to exhibit some of Bauman's personal interests and expertise, if such a word applies. Jason's presentation felt more like a sampling of the information the NYPL affords researchers -- samples which were drawn from the shallows of simple and common sense parameters: something Beat, and something new.

Minor Characters: New York Public Library

Being that it was a Saturday and I was having to go to an event for school I was not particularly enthusiastic about the whole thing. Once I arrived at the New York Public Library I had a little trouble finding the room where Professor Jason Bauman was giving his lecture on “This is the Beat Generation”. I did not have any expectations for the lecture which is why I think by the end I was pleasantly surprised by how much I had enjoyed it.

The Jack Kerouac exhibition which the NYPL was hosting was of course the big draw but it was refreshing that Professor Bauman’s lecture did not focus on the major characters during the beat generation but rather the minor, less publicized characters. Professor Bauman’s focus on Diane Di Prima and Bob Kaufman revealed a completely new way of looking at historical moments in time. So often the public gets swept away by the major characters in play and forgets to examine those who were much less famous but not any less important to the movement du jour. I do not want to take anything away from Jack Kerouac or Allen Ginsberg but I found it particularly interesting to learn about Diane Di Prima, a woman who had just as much to say as Kerouac or Ginsberg, but also had the challenge of raising five children on her own while trying to maintain a space in which she was able to express herself through her writing. It was learning and exploring the lives of these “minor” characters which ultimately gave me the idea for my final project in my “Life on the Square” class.

After the lecture given by Professor Bauman I took myself upstairs and proceeded to walk through the “On the Road: Jack Kerouac” exhibition. What immediately struck me was Jack Kerouac’s manuscript of “On the Road” on a scroll, unrolled, under glass protection, and in the middle of the room. Instantly I had a flash back to the manuscript of Henri James written on a scroll which I had seen a couple of weeks prior at The Morgan. I couldn’t help but wonder what it was about writing in the form of the scroll which extremely talented writers gravitated to? I do not know that I am necessarily looking for an answer, I am not really sure if there really is an answer to this question, but I do find it to be continually intriguing to explore the idea of scroll writing. After having just attended Professor Bauman’s lecture on the minor characters of the beat generation I found myself to be acutely aware, while walking through the exhibit and enjoying the many examples of Kerouac’s work, of the unflattering light which Kerouac portrayed his female characters in his novel “On the Road”. Although the novel is apparently semi-autobiographical I wonder how much of the depictions of women were embellished and how much of the depictions were accurate, or for lack of a better word unbiased? Again, I know that this is a question which I will never find an answer to but I am more than okay with just tossing it around within my own head.

Although I did have to make an extra trip into the city that weekend, what I gained from both the lecture and the exhibit was worth much more than the four dollars which I had to spend on the subway getting to and from my destination.

NYPL and NYHS

The morning of my racing to get to the New York Historical Society was a bad one. My class ended late, and I had to walk from Bowery to 6th Avenue and catch a train uptown. I wasn't thinking and took the next train that came to the station, the A train. I ended up getting off at 125th Street. It was a miserable experience. I made it to Central Park West but had no idea where the building was. I was so confused. I randomly ran into a friend who had just gone to the Museum of Natural History, and he couldn't help me out. Oh, also, I left my cell phone under my pillow. I was just about to give up when I walked right in front of the building. 15 minutes late, I finally made it. I never thought I would ever step foot in the New York Historical Society. Laid out on the table were many documents about Washington Square Park. It was all pretty fascinating. Our guides were very knowledgeable on each piece they presented to us. The piece I thought was most fascinating, was the drawing of the proposed roads through Washington Square Park. Robert Moses was a very powerful man, and was totally stopped in his tracks. I think that's remarkable. I liked visiting here, but I wish they had more for us to see, like the Fales Collection.

I have never been to the New York Public Library before. For some reason, I actually thought I'd never go there. I arrived, and saw no one that I recognized anywhere in front of the building. I walked in at the same time that another lecture-seeker did and we asked where it was being held. We followed the confusing directions to where the room actually was. The man I was walking with asked me why I was going to the lecture and I said that I was going for a class. I explained that I was taking a class on Washington Square Park. "What's Washington Square Park?" Take that for what it is.

I didn't quite expect there to be such a large group. I stood in the path of the doorway awkwardly while a chair was procured in the front-right of the room. I expected a general lecture on the Beat Generation, however, what was presented was something much more interesting. My knowledge of the Beats goes as deep as Kerouac, Ginsberg and Burroughs; and I didn't know much about any of them until now. Two lesser known Beats were presented: Diane DiPrima, a woman, and Bob Kaufman, a black man. It was interesting to learn about their encounters with the well-known authors and poets of the generation. They all seemed to know and be aware of one another. Though I didn't get a copy of the packets that were distributed, at least I was able to hear Bob Kaufman's "Heavy Water Blues" being recited. That just might be one of the best pieces of writing I've ever heard. I say 'heard' because I can't seem to find a copy online anywhere. I'll probably end up tracking down a copy at Bobst to read it again. The lecture was somewhat stimulating. Maybe I was just tired. However, I became very excited when I entered the Kerouac exhibit. There is so much information and just weird objects at every turn. I think his fantasy baseball obsession is incredible. I was also very excited because there were many references to his living in Northport, which is one town over from mine in Long Island. I've walked past the bar, Gunther's, that Kerouac frequented, many times; I never knew its history. 

nypl

I read On The Road and The Dharma Bums years ago. Although I am a fan of Jack Kerouac’s work and knew a little bit about the Beat Generation, I didn’t know anything outside of the writing before my visit to the NYPL. I really wish I could have read everything that was on display, but I didn’t have time. The few things that I examined in detail were some of Jack Kerouac’s personal journals, drawings, the scroll and Allan Ginsberg’s photographs. In one of Kerouac’s early journals that he kept as a kid, he wrote about playing with cardboard cars in class when he wasn’t supposed to be and I laughed. This is how I pictured him being from his books- energetic and mischievous. Then I got to the other side of the room and saw his list he kept of women he slept with. He a) kept track of them and b) rearranged their names every now and then. It was just something I hadn’t really expected to see because I thought of him as a writer and not a regular guy with a personal life. Most of the names were full names, and every now and then he forgot one and wrote down a city and short description of where this was or how they met. I’m still not sure whether overlooking women and being chauvinistic was a personal trait or widespread at the time. There were several glass cases that held his fantasy baseball drawings and notes. He was really obsessed with that stuff and kept lists of teams, traded players and drew players’ positions on the field. Organization is a quirk that I had not expected to find in Kerouac. In one of the YouTube videos in the syllabus, he talked about why he wrote on the scroll. It allowed him to free-write without stopping or rearranging chapters. I noticed that there was almost no editing done to the script on display. It really was written in one train of thought, which is why it flows so well. I didn’t know that Allen Ginsberg got into photography in addition to writing. I liked the images he took because, through peoples’ expressions and gestures, Ginsberg captured the way his crowd was living.

Kerouac

I went into the lecture at the New York Public Library expecting it to be on Kerouac.  I read The Dharma Bums a few summers ago, and On the Road for this class.  That's pretty much the extent of my Kerouac exposure.  I know little about the man.  I was surprised to learn that the lecture was not on Kerouac, nor Ginsberg or Burroughs.  My impression was that the lecture was geared towards people with a keen knowledge of the Beat Generation, and sometimes I got confused.  It was interesting to hear about Diane Di Prima, one of the few women associated with the Beat Generation.  

After the lecture ended, I headed to the exhibit.  I loved the way it was set up, with the scroll unrolled in the middle stemming from a giant image of a road.  It was fitting.  Looking at the yellowed paper that Kerouac wrote on, I realized why I found the book so frantic sounding.  It was written on a never-ending piece of paper, with little regard for paragraph or sentence breaks.   On The Road is truly a work of passion.  

I keep thinking about the discussion we had in class last Monday.  The notion that Jack Kerouac was not the nicest man, especially to women, seems clear to me.  It seemed nearly every female in OTR was a hooker or grossly mistreated by someone she trusted.  However, I think what struck me most about the portrayal of women in OTR was how Sal treated his mother.  He seemed to have little regard for her feelings or well-being.  You can always judge a boy by how he treats his mother.  I was reminded of this while looking at one of Kerouac's scrapbooks.  There was a collage of various mildly promiscuous images of women balanced by newspaper clippings and pictures of cats.  Kerouac had spelled various things out.  The plaque above it informed me that Kerouac had made this for his mother, with no intent on actually giving it to her, about his life.  It was indicative of a troubled relationship.  Perhaps Kerouac portrayed women in a negative light in his books because he had a lot of trouble relating to his mother.