Working in the West Village allows you to live out real-life
cliché NYC moments, the kind of moments that allow you to fall in love with this
magical city all over again. Not only is it one of the most beautiful
neighborhoods in Manhattan, it also exudes, in my opinion, the most
personality. It looks, smells, sounds and feels like the NYC of my dreams. I’m a lucky guy.
On that note, while strolling down Bleecker on my lunch
break I happened to pass Bookmarc, Marc Jacob's trendy, yet surprisingly thoughtful bookstore. Through the window
an image of a young, boyish model with pink hair and tired eyes caught my
attention and drew me into the store. It was the cover of fashion photographer
David Armstrong’s new book, 615 Jefferson Ave. After thumbing through a few
pages I quickly learned that all of the images, boyish models types, were taken
in his turn of the century row house in Bed-Stuy,
Brooklyn. I later learned after a little more research that this
legendary residence is at once both Mr. Armstrong’s home as well as an odd house
of curiosities. The reputation of this house becomes evident in beautiful,
sunlit images of youth that fill the fascinating pages of this coffee table
find – boys in clown collars and feathers, in claw-foot bathtubs or laid out on
wrinkled sheets.
The whole idea of purchasing a photography book brought back
an immediate feeling of nostalgia. I used to worship photography books when I
was a kid. I devoured the amazing
groupings of images – models and fashion, sex and style, that could only be
found in a bound hard collection. It made me realize that with the
everything-at-your-fingertip virtual world that I am now a member of, one where
images come and go so quickly and can be accessed at the speed of light, that
the idea of buying a book of images seemed so old fashion…until I actually
bought it, and then it immediately felt modern and new and relevant.
I think this purchase just might kick start a photography
book renaissance for me. I can now appreciate what it means to actually take
the time to study and absorb a collection of images. Maybe its old fashion,
maybe its nostalgic, but for me its new, modern and now.
