Matt Weber (Street photography), Kids & Teens, Old New York

NYC 1989

The Amsterdam projects were among NYC’s first. I’m pretty sure Robert Moses had a hand in their coming about. Built in 1947 they were a partial answer to all the troops that had come home after the war and needed affordable housing. I think they may have been better off leaving the tenements alone, because the projects eventually became isolated neighborhoods within a neighborhood. To this day, you have people who barely leave the projects to shop and it creates a weird type of personality disorder. Just knowing that your entire existence is based on government handouts could make the people feel a bit depressed as the affluent flutter about the perimeter. Rich people walking their kids to private school, pass the projects full of welfare recipients and crack dealers, who glare back unhappily. I know that some people will use the cheap rent to launch a better life for themselves, but most will spend all their days in these experiments from the laboratory of Moses and his minions…

One last gripe about NYC’s housing projects…If they had just put in larger windows, these buildings wouldn’t resemble the virtual prisons which they are. A little more light could have made a difference…

All Photos © Matt Weber

Matt Weber "New New York", (Street photography), Coney Island, Women of New York

Coney Island 2010

I went to the Mermaid parade last week, and of course as long as I don’t shoot the parade, I have a chance to get what I’m looking for. Of course, I have no idea what that may be. This picture made me happy because it falls into that category of things I’ve never seen before, and know I’ll never see again…A bunch of kids playing under a beach umbrella, flanked by twin sentinels in profile, ready to pop…Now that’s what I’m talking about!

All Photos © Matt Weber

Matt Weber (Street photography), Coney Island, Offspring

Coney Island 2007

I think this may have been taken in Astroland but the main story is that “Little” loves the water gun game, and always loses. Finally last year with a lifetime record of 0-15 she beat a young boy and was thrilled with her victory. It’s amazing that winning can be so important to a girl at such a young age, but I guess it’s just part of the human condition…

All Photos © Matt Weber