The images in my portfolio, Red Hook Stories, 1980-1992, are now officially a part of the Red Hook Archive at Kentler Gallery in my old Brooklyn neighborhood. Florence Neal, a long time resident of the Hook opened the first gallery on Van Brunt Street in the mid-eighties. She has since amassed an impressive collection of photographs, new and historical, paintings, maps, newspapers, historical documents and more; some are available for viewing only and some are for sale. I am honored to be a part of this archive and eventually a full set of the Red Hook Stories portfolio will be available from the Kentler in an edition of 25. Take a look at the portfolio here on my site. Several of the images are available now at the Gallery. The Red Hook Archive official site is: http://www.kentlergallery.org/pages/redhook.html
And don’t forget while there to take a look at Red Hook Stories, stories from the neighborhood by the writer Maureen McNeil illustrated with my photographs. This book was published in 2008 and is available on Amazon. http://www.amazon.com/Red-Hook-Stories-Maureen-McNeil/dp/1436303850 And while the printing quality is poor, the contents are definitely not. Maureen’s stories are lyrical and romantic in the face of squalor and despair. The characters intertwine to create a whole picture of the neighborhood in that moment in time. I hope the photographs do the same. In the eighties, Maureen and I were pals, living a block away from each other for almost a decade. Renovating houses and having babies, we walked around and around the neighborhood many afternoons with dogs, kids and my camera. Look for a newly published version of this book soon which will have much better quality photographs, layout and design. In the meantime, go to the Kentler site again, http://www.kentlergallery.org/pages/archives/4_12_08.htm and take a look at the opening at Kentler for book and the portfolio. It was great to be back in the neighborhood.
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