seven lands
Come on Queensicans, we can do better.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Illegal dumping is the native art form of Queens. One has presented ample evidence to back up this bold assertion, over the years at this, your Newtown Pentacle. Saying that, what I recently witnessed along Northern Blvd. was simply a degenerate bastardization of this Queensylvanian mode of self expression. C’mon, no broken cabinetry or busted 1999 vintage computer monitors? Where are the piles of tires? What kind of “Long Island City Art Installation” was this?
– photo by Mitch Waxman
This pavement midden was encountered nearby the 36th street R/M station, and I would prefer to think of it as art. The work was composed of a heterogenous collection of paper and plastic simulacra. It looked a great deal like litter, which might have been the intent of the artist. If so, the illusion was achieved and my disbelief was positively suspended. The composition left me flat, however, with its banal and well rehearsed commentary on the post industrial urban milieu.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
When I was a young narrator, not yet humble but instead filled with the vainglories of youthful ambition, an enormous act of social engineering was perpetrated upon my peer group by the government. Woodsie the Owl always reminded one to “give a hoot and don’t pollute” and use proper receptacles for trash, with an impression made that disobeyance of said missive would end all life upon the Earth. This sort of environmentally friendly messaging has been absent for quite some time, and is a curricula which has not been offered to subsequent generations, as evinced by the bold compositions offered by these street artists in Queens.
Upcoming Tours
Saturday – October 19, 2013
The Insalubrious Valley of the Newtown Creek with Atlas Obscura- tickets on sale soon.
Sunday- October 20th, 2013
The Poison Cauldron of the Newtown Creek with Brooklyn Brainery- tickets on sale now
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
lately passed
It’s Blasphemy Day!
– photo by Mitch Waxman
A newish holiday, Blasphemy Day was started in 2009 by the secularist organization “Center for Inquiry,” which was established by Paul Kurtz. Kurtz was “the father of secular humanism” and the founder of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP), the Council for Secular Humanism, and the Center for Inquiry. Blasphemy Day was set up, in part, to protest the notion that there are still blasphemy laws in many of the worlds nations, including the UK, the EU, and six of the United States (really, Massachusetts?).
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Personally, my entire spiritual foundation is based on the veneration of Superman. April 18 is my holy day, celebrating the publication of Action Comics #1, wherein the revelation of the savior was revealed. This was when the good news was released to an anxious nation that Jor El had sent his only begotten son to live amongst, morally instruct, and catechize us. For me, blasphemy is the ridiculous notion that this is a fictional story. Clearly, we live in a state of sin which precludes the man of steel from revealing himself to us, as evinced by the popularity of the heretics over at Marvel and their collusion with the evils of the Floridian Disney empire.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The traditional sort of blasphemy which would have gotten you into a lot of trouble until quite recently is something which one observes on a regular basis, around the Newtown Pentacle. Occult artifacts and the leave behinds of eldritch rites are not hard to find in area cemeteries, for instance. Go to City Hall over in the Shining City and proclaim any objection to policies offered, and you will find yourself accused of blaspheming against logic and proportion, and branded with a scarlet letter marking an enemy of the state.
Upcoming Tours
Saturday – October 19, 2013
The Insalubrious Valley of the Newtown Creek with Atlas Obscura-
tickets on sale soon.
Sunday- October 20th, 2013
The Poison Cauldron of the Newtown Creek with Brooklyn Brainery-
tickets on sale now
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
corporeal presences
The Halve Maen floats in for maritime sunday.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Just a couple of weeks ago, the replica ship Halve Maen, or Half Moon, was spotted while it was plying the harbor just off the coast of Breuckelen. Back during the days of the Dutch decadence, this sort of thing would have been a fairly common sight, just like public floggings.
from wikipedia
Another replica of the Halve Maen (officially Anglicized as Half Moon) was constructed in Albany, New York in 1989 by the New Netherland Museum. The museum contracted with Nicholas S. Benton to design and build the replica. Mr. Benton, a master ship-rigger and shipwright, was president of the Rigging Gang of Middletown, Rhode Island, which specialized in colonial ship restoration and design. To prepare for building the Half Moon, a $1 million project, he visited maritime museums in the Netherlands and the United States. After his death while assisting with the rigging of another vessel, the construction of the Half Moon was completed by the New Netherland Museum. The year 2009 marks the 400th anniversary of the Halve Maen’s voyage. For the anniversary, the crown prince of the Netherlands and his wife were on board, as well as students from a Dutch school. This anniversary was marked in September 2009 with festivals, music, sailing ships parading around New York Harbor.
Upcoming Tours
Saturday – October 19, 2013
The Insalubrious Valley of the Newtown Creek with Atlas Obscura- tickets on sale soon.
Sunday- October 20th, 2013
The Poison Cauldron of the Newtown Creek with Brooklyn Brainery- tickets on sale now
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Project Firebox 90
An ongoing catalog of New York’s endangered Fireboxes.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The chap who is reprinting the Fireboxes of Woodside and Astoria seems to have struck again. This garish representation alongside St. Michael’s cemetery may not be wearing the uniform of the day, nor is outfitted according to regulation, but it still stands tall should menace or bad fortune cross its path.
Upcoming Tours
Saturday – October 19, 2013
The Insalubrious Valley of the Newtown Creek with Atlas Obscura- tickets on sale soon.
Sunday- October 20th, 2013
The Poison Cauldron of the Newtown Creek with Brooklyn Brainery- tickets on sale now
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
psychologically sensitive
Another darkling image in today’s post.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
As mentioned yesterday, an attempt to catch up on my many deadlines is under way, hence a single shot with little commentary is offered.
Upcoming Tours
Saturday- September 28, 2013
Newtown Creek Boat Tour with the Working Harbor Committee- tickets on sale now.
Saturday – October 19, 2013
The Insalubrious Valley of the Newtown Creek with Atlas Obscura- tickets on sale soon.
Sunday- October 20th, 2013
The Poison Cauldron of the Newtown Creek with Brooklyn Brainery- tickets on sale now
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
