Scrap

By Hudson Zamacona

New York City is a cool location, because you can walk anywhere and find a hip place out of nowhere. A few months ago, I was walking with nothing to do, and I looked across the street and found Scrap Yard NYC.

Scrap Yard is a street art shop in SoHo, New York on Canal and W. Broadway. It is the world’s longest standing graffiti shop, and they sell the top brands of paint. Montana cans, for example, are sold there.

Three years after “Parabellum,” John Wick returns in the fourth installment of his franchise. Released March 24, it has been held in extremely high regard by audiences.

Starring Canadian actor Keanu Reeves, John Wick takes action against the high-level players of the High Table and elite members of the underworld, who are after the $14 million bounty on his head. To survive, Wick must traverse the underworld of sites from Osaka, Japan to Paris, France.

A major aspect of this movie that has made the franchise stand out is the outstanding fight scenes throughout. In an interview with Sam Cleal about the choreography of the film with director Chad Stahelski, Stahelski started by saying, “Choreography, I think, by its nature is fun. It’s supposed to be difficult. You’re supposed to figure it all out, and that’s the fun part… I mean, there were no incidents, no animals or humans were hurt, but sometimes the moves don’t quite do what we’re supposed to do. But that’s the fun part!”

Lead actor Reeves followed up by saying, “The stunt guys were amazing. Like, in the Osaka Continental scene, there was this kid who just threw himself down an escalator.” Along the same lines, movie reviewer Dwight Brown stated that “John Wick 4” is “an elaborately choreographed, gorgeously crafted slaughter fest. A blood-thirsty spectacle. A circus of scoundrels fighting to the death in the most gracefully violent ways.”

Fans of the franchise enjoyed this latest installment. A Rotten Tomatoes critic was engulfed, writing, “Even as the world around Wick expands, and the death count spikes exponentially, Chapter 4 remembers well that the body keeps the score; Reeves makes the weariness of this long-anguished assassin more palpable than ever.” An interesting fact to note is that this franchise is so well loved, that King Abdullah II of Jordan lent the production a Black Hawk helicopter to capture a sunrise scene during filming.

Another vital aspect that adds to the overall impact of the film is how it pays homage to actor Donnie Yen’s Hong Kong movies. His first roles in Western films were smaller roles in “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” and “xXx: Return of Xander Cage.”

In “John Wick: Chapter 4,” Yen’s fighting skills and superb stunt work were displayed in his leading role as the assassin Caine. In an intense fight scene at the Osaka Continental Hotel, Yen’s movements and fighting style are nods to his martial arts films “Ip Man” and “In the Line of Duty IV.”

This is not the first tribute made in John Wick movies. In a synopsis by writer/ranter Brad Curran, director “Chad Stahelski has overtly paid tribute to many martial arts classics in the franchise’s action scenes. These have included the hall of mirrors in John Wick: Chapter 2 being a tribute to Enter the Dragon”

Curran continued, “many shattered glass cases in John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum being a tribute to the climactic mall fight in Jackie Chan’s Police Story, in which much glass is shattered. Add in John’s Bruce Lee-worthy use of a pair of nunchakus in one of John Wick: Chapter 4’s fight scenes, and Stahelski’s directorial trademark of paying homage to beloved martial arts films really stands out.”

It is interesting to note that there is fan fiction surrounding the ending that leaves the audience the slim possibility of another film in the future. In my personal opinion, this latest film is the perfect ending to a historic franchise that made a mark for years to come.

The store itself, which is smaller than your bedroom, is drenched with graffiti stickers from artists all over the world on its walls. On the right, after you walk in, there are lockers with all the spray paint cans, and when you turn left, there is artist merch on the walls, including hats, shirts, hoodies, etc. The paint pens are in the middle of the shop in a glass case.

According to their website, Scrap Yard was established in 1990, when SoHo was called SoHo down and under, meaning that graffiti was considered an underworld activity because it is generally frowned upon. Street artists had Scrap Yard to fulfill their needs in the world of street art.

They carry many popular brands that street artists love. Aside from Montana, they sell Krink and MTN, and they collab with local New York City artists selling their custom merchandise. Some locals who sell their merch in Scrap Yard are Villainous, Vandal, New York Robbery, and others.

This shop may be small, but the inventory is loaded. They carry every color of spray paint imaginable, and they sell stickers, paint markers, mops, and caps. Caps are accessories used to either make the paint thinner or thicker.

Instead of using these spray paint cans for projects such as home improvement, these cans are meant for art, specifically street art. Some may incorrectly think that graffiti is vandalism, but there truly is an art form to tagging walls.

Of course you need permission from the business or landlord, and if you get it, it is your time to make a personal mark on that piece of property. Or you can be a rebel and not ask for permission, but do so at your own risk. Construction areas are less risky for this art, because there is usually a lot of scrap wood or fencing that will most likely be taken down.

According to James, the owner, Scrap Yard is unique com- pared to the other shops in that genre due to its originality and just how vintage it is overall. This shop has not moved and has not changed since 1990, and 1990 was a huge era in street art across NYC. The owner, when asked about his plans for the future in a YouTube video posted by Graffiti NYC TV, replied, “You won’t be ready for it.”

Scrap Yard also sells merchandise via their website, scrapyardnyc.com, and I recommend checking out their various social media accounts, too. But you need to be in the shop for the experience.

There are several reviews on Yelp that praise Scrap Yard. Mark P. from Caldwell Idaho stated, “They have a very unique art supply store.” Cody S. from San Jose, California writes, “It’s packed with quality products and awesome gear.” Lastly, Erica F. from Clearwater, Florida stated, “I AM IN LOVE.” Clearly, many people from all over the country have good things to say about Scrap Yard. I would not be surprised if people from other countries have checked it out, too

Scrap Yard is a needle in a haystack buried in the streets of SoHo NYC, and if you happen to find this joint, definitely pop in and check it out.