The Five Boroughs Project
I had thought I had been transported to a war zone in another country. You could still smell the burning residue in the air. Shops were vacant and fencing and barriers had been erected to keep people away from the hazardous areas. The visions of destruction were more than I had expected. Smashed windows and piles of concrete and metal girder could been seen in various areas. However, the city continued to flourish. Healing had already begun. – First Stop Manhattan, Donald K. Uvick
The description comes from a short photo book I put together in 2008. It describes my thoughts when I visited Ground Zero a few months after 9/11. It was at that time that I began my personal project of photographing my second home, New York City.
The Five Boroughs project was a personal challenge to create a portfolio of images depicting the life in each of the boroughs of NYC. Over the course of the past ten + years I have accumulated images which capture the essence of this City that Never Sleeps. However, it became apparent that this ambitious project was going to be a challenge taking decades to complete.
Manhattan was the first borough since it was the birthplace of this project. Back in 2008, I exhibited a number of images which are found in the current; “Return to Manhattan” exhibition. The city has flourished since 9/11 and provides a model of growth for other areas of the country. The rebirth of Ground Zero, the Green “Highline” area, the Low Line (closed) and the Second Avenue subway tunnel shows the various revitalization efforts underway in the city.
Images for the project will be posted at my SMUGMUG website.