NYC's Houston & B murals: 1996-2010

October 15, 2010 8:24 AM

NYC's Houston & B murals: 1996-2010
Ever since 1996, I've been visiting the corner of New York City's Houston Street and Avenue B to photograph the ever-changing murals on the site. In that time, the corner's hosted graffiti memorials to Elisa Izquierdo, Selena Perez, Princess Diana, Celia Cruz and Pope John Paul II. More recently, these have given way to ads for bands like Aventura, Nenes Con Estylo and Lois Aidas. You can find my photographs of all these murals and a few thoughts on the site's changing nature at the link above.
posted by Paul Slade (7 comments total)

Great stuff. I remember several of these vividly, and can see the most recent one from my bedroom window as I'm writing this. Do you have any of the mural wall on 2nd and A, or the one over on C near 6th?
posted by saladin at 5:21 PM on October 17, 2010

You'd have to remind me what is/was pictured on those particular sites, Saladin. Off the top of my head, I've got that Joe Strummer mural that's all over the internet, a handful of post-9/11 sites celebrating the World Trade Centre and a few gangsta memorials from Hell's Kitchen.

I'm actually based in London, and I only get to New York once a year or so, which means I have a question for you as well. Have I missed any significant murals at that Houston & B site which popped up and disappeared again without me ever seeing them? And do you happen to know who (if anyone) occupied that corner before Elisa and Selena arrived?
posted by Paul Slade at 2:34 AM on October 18, 2010

I'm pretty sure the one on 2nd at A is some sort of memorial right now, and the one on C at 6th was, at least the last time I saw it, a celebration of Barack Obama's election victory. I had completely forgotten about Joe Strummer up on 7th (or 6th) and A.

As for what was on the wall pre-Selena, I have absolutely no idea. I only moved to NYC in 2000, and only became aware of those murals around 2001.

God I love this neighborhood.
posted by saladin at 4:48 AM on October 18, 2010

Nice. I want to bike around alphabet city now.
posted by fuq at 8:09 AM on October 20, 2010

AND eat at Punjabi Deli, Houston & Ave A!
posted by fuq at 8:10 AM on October 20, 2010

I do wonder if there were murals missed along the way. Might be worth linking to images you find online to fill in the gaps.

had me some Punjabi Deli this weekend. soooooo good
posted by rottytooth at 2:02 PM on October 26, 2010

"I do wonder if there were murals missed along the way. Might be worth linking to images you find online to fill in the gaps."

I'd love to, but how? Without knowing what I'm looking for, I can't search for any missing murals by name and few of the graffiti images on-line give a precise address for their location. The images themselves are usually cropped too tightly to show any identifying surroundings, so there's no help to be had there either.
posted by Paul Slade at 3:24 PM on October 26, 2010