Blog -

Hunt’s Point

Hunts Point

You Never Tell Me You Love Me

Hunt’s Point, a neighborhood of New York’s Bronx borough, is one of the last remaining areas in the city where the sex trade still takes place openly on the street. The images in You Never Tell Me You Love Me explore the rough, troubled environment in which this industry thrives, focusing on the daily lives of the people who inhabit it. The projects goal is to provide a meaningful glimpse into this illicit world. It was inspired by photography I had previously done in Brooklyn’s East New York, long considered the borough’s most desperate neighborhood. I found then, as I have now, that the more time I spent in the area, the more open my subjects became with me: more secrets and insights were provided.

I visited Hunt’s Point every week over a period of four months, spending full days photographing my subjects in front of bright, paint-splattered walls, huge dirty trucks, forlorn train tracks and ramshackle fences, as well as inside “quick sheet” motels, and the single room dwellings, where some of them lived. I often accompanied them on their outings to the locations where they purchased narcotics, and they often asked to be photographed as they got high. Hoods pulled up over their heads, they smoked crack in the middle of the sidewalk, and injected heroin while hiding behind the commercial trucks scattered throughout the area.

My subjects live on the fringes of society. They are discounted, disenfranchised. Most come from backgrounds shaped by poverty and crime. In a country where the income gap between the wealthy and the poor continues to widen, this experience often leads to desperation, despair, drug use, and other dysfunctional behavior. Lack of access to adequate health care and safe housing exacerbates the problem. In You Never Tell Me You Love Me, I want to recognize these struggling people, to validate their humanity, and to bring attention to their plight.

I met Tracie on one of my first visits to the Point. I found her to be a great subject, and she had more experience in the area than anyone I met. She lived in a Box truck and to get in touch with her, I would simply go to the truck and tap on the window.

Anna was quite the wild-child. In an area not known for restrained behavior, her free spirit stood out. She loved to show off her multitude of tattoos, and was fun to photograph.

I met Chelley late one night when I was about to go home. She was so interesting to photograph, and was highly intelligent as well. She was transitioning.

J Lo was my favorite person from the Point. She was a no-nonsense, touch, insightful woman who had been out there for twenty years. She also offered me protection on occasion, when I ran into trouble.

This is Pam. She was a bit suspicious of me at first, but once she trusted me, turned out to be so sweet and kind.

Studies in New York

Studies in new york

East New York: I Don’t Smile Anymore

I spent the fall of 2017 photographing the rough neighborhood of east New York. East New York is a neighborhood of extremes. It has more methadone clinics, registered sex offenders, felony arrests, and murders, by far, than any other area in the city. Over half the population lives below the poverty line. The police there, have a long history of engaging in corrupt behavior. A broken Waste Water Treatment Plant, an area so far below sea level that it has no sewage system (nicknamed “The Hole”): the list goes on and on.

I went to East New York, for three-and-one-half months, shooting photographs of abandoned building, hookers, homeless people, and trucks covered with vibrant colorful graffiti, as well as people simply going about their day to day routine. But I favored the ones who seemed to be on the edge.

Three-and-one half months, one dropped camera, a scratched lens, (replaced, for free), ripped up clothing, bottles thrown my way, and countless breaks in a hundred dirty disgusting bathrooms later, it was over. This is the result.

THis is Samantha. I spent an hour walking around with her photographing her in front of the buildings in the area. She was speedy, and would settle down when it was time to take a photo, and was a great subject.

I met this man in my home base, which was a McDonalds in the area. He went out to the parking lot with me, and gave me some great looks.

I think this is m favorite photo of the project. He looked so broken when i spotted him in the subway. He went limping past me, and i followed him, and waited for him at the end of the block. He was surprised that i wanted to photograph him, and told me, as he walked away, that it was the easiest ten dollars he had ever made.

I love this man’s look. He was sitting in a local park, and has such a sad poignant expression.

I don’t remember this girls name, but she was so accomidating and let me take photo after photo of her. I think she loved the attention.