James and Karla Murray, the photographic duo known for their evocative images of New York City’s streetscape, have ventured into more intimate territory with their latest publication. Their new book, “Great Bars of New York City: 30 of Manhattan’s Favorite Storied Drinking Establishments,” offers a glimpse inside some of the city’s most cherished watering holes, a departure from their prior focus on the exteriors of bar and storefronts. The pair’s journey through the interior spaces of these establishments reveals the unique details that give each bar its character and place in the city’s social fabric. “To us, there’s no better place to get to know a community or a neighborhood than its bars,” Karla Murray told ABC7NY in a statement.
Retracting New York’s ever-changing streets, the Murrays’ work documents a city in flux, as seen in their previous publications “Store Front NYC” and “New York Nights.” In an interview with Print Magazine, the Murrays shared their beginnings, rooted deeply in New York City’s eclectic neighborhoods. Karla, a true native raised in the Bronx, and James, who saw the transformation of Bridgeport, Connecticut, merged their passion for photography upon meeting in the Lower East Side. Their artistic partnership and personal relationship developed simultaneously, born out of a mutual love for the unique urban landscapes of New York.
Since 1997, the Murrays have been recognized for capturing the disappearing face of New York, a mission that has gained urgency as the city’s independent shopfronts continue to give way to the tides of commerce and gentrification. Their work serves as a historical record, considering that over 80 percent of the storefronts featured in their first book have vanished, with nearly half from the second book having followed suit, according to Print Magazine. “Store Front NYC: Photographs of the City’s Independent Shops, Past and Present,” their newest photographic collection, is a testament to these vanishing facades, presented through a lens of admiration and respect for the city’s cultural diversity and vivacity.
The inspiration for their initial project came unexpectedly, as they were working on a different book centered around graffiti art. Their chance encounter with Katy’s Candy Store, whose elderly owner, Katy Keyzer, described herself humorously yet poignantly as “the dinosaur of Tompkins” because of her long-standing presence in the neighborhood, changed their trajectory. James and Karla recounted to Print Magazine that she was an elderly white woman in a neighborhood that had changed its ethnic makeup, and she told us the reason why she had survived was that “she ‘spoke three languages: English, Spanish, and motherfucker.” The unvarnished eloquence that she conveyed, unfortunately, was not enough to keep the shop open, as it ultimately closed due to a rent increase.
The Murrays’ efforts to preserve these visual anchors of New York’s neighborhoods through their photographs carry a profound relevance as the city evolves at an unrelenting pace. By chronicling the personal stories and idiosyncratic beauty of bars and storefronts, they not only archive a disappearing era but also provide an intimate lens through which to view the living history of New York City. Their work is as much about the buildings they capture as it is about the people and stories that define them, ensuring that, as New York marches on, the memory of its former visage does not fade entirely into the shadows of progress.
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