The T Line Zine

The T Line

Manhattan Chamber of Commerce, President Nancy Ploeger Creative Arts Workshops for Kids, Executive Director Brian Ricklin Creative Arts Workshops for Kids, Program Director Anthony Gonzalez The T Line Curator & Photography Workshop Teaching Artist Lafotographeuse (nĂŠe Amanda Adams-Louis) Stanley M. Isaacs Neighborhood Center, On-Track Program Coordinator: Jose Figueroa The T Line Photographers Maria Arias, Brianna Leandre, Ivette Maduro, Fatima Ndiaye, Jeremiah Torres , Camille Weston

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his catalogue is an archive of The T Line, a photography exhibition that occurred on June 1, 2013 during the 2nd Avenue Fair. The T Line portrays the construction of the 86th , 96th and 103rd Street stations along the 2nd Ave Subway Line and the people, space and places in between. Maria Arias, Brianna Leandre, Ivette Maduro, Fatima Ndiaye, Jeremiah Torres and Camille Weston, six high school students enrolled in Stanley M. Isaacs Neighborhood Center’s On-Track Program, made the images included in The T Line. In May 2013, Maria, Brianna, Ivette, Fatima, Jeremiah and Camille participated in a five -session, Photography and Digital Imaging workshop facilitated by CAW, sponsored by the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce and hosted Stanley M. Isaacs Neighborhood Center. During the workshop students learned basic 2-D visual art composition skills and received Photoshop instruction. They also drafted and revised their biographies and statements, photographed and enhanced the images on display in the upcoming pages.

The Struggle and Benefit of 2nd Avenue Construction

Brianna Leandre BIOGRAPHY: My name is Brianna Leandre and I am fifteen years old. I attend Park East High school as a sophomore. I was born on July 2nd at Our Lady of Mercy Hospital. My favorite things to do are sing and play the piano. My hobbies consist of drawing clothes for mannequins and make fashion blogs on Tumblr. I have been playing the piano since the age of two.

This photo series meant a lot to me and I hope it interests you.

ARTIST STATEMENT:

My photo series was based on how the construction on 2nd Avenue affects businesses and homes. The sight of the blocks on 2nd Avenue was horrendous.

Construction signs were everywhere and barriers were blocking almost every store on the avenue. The people looked aggravated and annoyed with the way things were working and the narrow streets they had to walk on. Managers of restaurants had sad faces when I went in to ask questions on how they felt. People complained about dust in their homes and bad coughs. Everyday people have to be concerned with their neighborhood not being safe.

2nd Avenue’s construction isn’t overall a negative factor going on. The construction of a new train line can help businesses grow because people will have better access to diners, clothing stores, restaurants, etc. This will also help the businesses that have to close down, start over. This will also create better and faster ways of getting to and from Manhattan.

One of my strongest photos is one of an elderly woman. She is having problems with a horrible cough and dust in her house.

She says she thinks the air is toxic and is affecting her lungs.

Right after telling me these negative things she looked on the bright side and said, “Maybe the F train will make a difference in the businesses on 2nd Avenue”. My second strongest photo I have is of a bar/restaurant called “Midnight Blue”. The manager was glad to speak with me about his concerns. He said due to the construction blocking off his business, he has to close down. He states he has only been in business for two years. He says, “I can’t beat them”. But he too also looked on the brighter side and said, “I can always open my business somewhere else on 2nd Avenue. Maybe my business will be even better than it was.”

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Camille Weston BIOGRAPHY My name is Camille Weston.

I am fourteen years old. I go to Park East High School. I am Haitian and Italian. I live with my aunt and uncle and I am proud of it. I am very much into creative activities such as acting, drawing, writing, singing, photography and anything that helps to explain your true emotions and feelings, without feeling uncomfortable to do it.

ARTIST STATEMENT I joined photography because I had never done something like it before. I was excited to learn about the different ways to view an image and capture it in a way that expresses you. My collection of pictures was based on the business on Second Avenue, particularly the fashion part. I have always had an eye out for colorful things that express the person you are. The nail painting store really sparked something in me that I had never paid much attention to before. I found myself drawn to the creativity and determination in the eyes of the employees. This very much inspired me.

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Chanté Morris BIOGRAPHY My name is Chanté Morris. I am fourteen years old and I go to Park East High School. I live with my mom and older sister. I love to write, read books, listen to music, and watch television. I like to express myself through clothing and writing, without having anyone tell me I’m wrong.

I took a picture of the street sign in black and white which really inspired me. It was inspirational because people walk past that sign everyday and soon they will be able to ride past it on a train instead of walking.

ARTIST STATEMENT I joined photography because I like taking pictures. I wanted to learn how to express emotions and show what is happening in the same way professionals do. The pictures taken were based of the business on Second Ave. Especially the stores that people go into to express themselves. I went to the nail salon and took a picture of a lady getting her nails done. She made that choice because she wanted to look nice. I took a picture of the shelves with nail polish because the colors people chose represents them. It represents how they feel. The manicurist had a determination in her eyes because she knows she has to perfect this and give the lady what she wants.

The Subway Project

Fatima Ndiaye BIOGRAPHY My name is Fatima Ndiaye. I am 16 years old. I attend Life Sciences Secondary School. I enjoy dancing, writing poetry and creating art. I am a part of a family that believes in creative self-expression. Last year I attended On Track program as a 9th grader where I was guided to focus on my creative side while still focusing on my school work preparing for Regents.

This year I’m a mentor in On Track helping new 9th graders attending Park East High School.

ARTIST STATEMENT This photo series shows the hard work that the construction workers have put into their jobs. In the past couple of weeks of taking pictures I focused on capturing the workers in their workspace. I made some of my photographs in black and white to show the contrast between the hard labor while working and as everyday life goes on, at the same time.

As I looked more into the history of the Second Avenue subway construction I found out that this was a project that started in 1929. Due to many distractions and lack of funding the second avenue subway project fell through but was reestablished in 2007.

City Shapes

Ivette Maduro BIOGRAPHY My name is Ivette Maduro. I’m 14 years old and I love to draw/ sketch and paint. I also love to read (a lot) and I go to the library every Saturday. I’m an American of Dominican descent (American because I was born in the United States.) I speak fluently in English and Spanish. I rarely spoke when I was younger and when I did only Spanish came out. My mom wanted me to speak more and in English so she sent me to a school to learn it. Now I sometimes think when I’m speaking in Spanish I’m pronouncing some of those words wrong.

ARTIST STATEMENT These images are about the 2nd Avenue Subway Construction. My photo series about this construction is on Geometrical Features. When I was younger my 5th grade teacher told me that math was everywhere, in road signs, artwork, and images.

So I thought of Geometrical Features, art through this construction, and the buildings. Even though this construction has brought many problems like traffic, stores closing down, and personal problems like harder to breathe/coughing a lot, I wanted to focus on the beauty of it. Not that it was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen, but if you look closer at this construction site you see shapes. CITY SHAPES!!!

New York’s Instruments

Jeremiah Torres BIOGRAPHY I am Jeremiah Torres. I live in East Harlem. I am of Puerto Rican and American descent. I am a student at Park East High School and live with my mom, baby brother and my younger sister. My life has got me interested in photographing.

ARTIST STATEMENT I love to look at different pieces of technology. My favorite was always construction vehicles and tools used to construct a building. I believe that our loudest instruments are tools and trucks used in construction. Hammers, trucks, the towering cranes and the beeps that go off in the neighborhoods. My favorite type of machinery is the bulldozer. It is strong, reliant and very easy to see how one works. As a kid I used to play with building blocks and I get to be very creative of what I make. I would act as different kinds of tools and knock down the blocks.

New York At Its Worst!!!

Mariaelena Arias BIOGRAPHY My name is Mariaelena Arias. I am 14 years old. I am from Dominican Republic. Also I am a student from Park East High School. I live with my mother and Little sister and big brother.

During some classes that I gone to for photography I’ve gotten interested in being a photographer one day, maybe sometime around the future.

ARTIST STATEMENT

There are many reasons why New York, may be at its “worst.” As you can see the photographs that I’ve taken is all about Traffic! It has many affects for all the people around the area. The reason of this traffic jam is all because of, Subway Construction going on. It often gets really crowded during the process which where people are crossing the streets. Also because of construction, many restaurants may be even closing down! Traffic is very difficult to go by especially annoying when trying to cross.

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