New Acquisitions

A look at life in New York City in the 1980s and 1990s. Marcopoulos documents the art and music scenes, skate and teen culture, and street life in intimate, energetic photographs.

I discovered this book when looking through the collection of the Museum of Contemporary Photography. Nearly every photo I loved in their collection was listed as being in this book, and I knew we needed to have it. Modeled on the Farm Security Administration documentary project in the 1930s and 40s, Changing Chicago comissioned 33 photographers to document life in urban and suburban Chicago in 1987/1988.

Photos of the bands and fans that made up this underground pop movement. The photos and snapshots were compiled from nascent photographers. band members, and the scenesters themselves.

In 1926 Western Costume Company hired William Mortensen to be their in-house photographer. “Wescosco Studio” occupied an entire floor of the building, and Mortensen had free reign of props and costumes. (The relationship didn’t last long: DeMille hired Mortensen the following year.) Dubbed the “Antichrist” by Ansel Adams, Mortensen is a controversial photographer, best known for his macabre photographs and his pioneering techniques for photographic manipulation.

In the early 2000s, photographer Livia Corona toured through Mexico and rural areas of the US with the Enanitos Toreros, troupes of little people performing as bullfighters. Her photos are vibrant and touching; we couldn’t pass this one up.

A celebration of Cleveland, commissioned for the city’s bicentennial in 1996. The beautiful compilation of images by dozens of local photographers shows the diversity of life in a typical American city at the end of the 20th century.

The America 24/7 project amassed photographs from more than 25,000 photographers across the country to document everyday life in each of the 50 states. We have several of these books in our library, including America 24/7, New Hampshire 24/7, and Wisconsin 24/7.

An incredible collection of photos of Times Square nightlife in the early 1980s. 42nd Street — the Forty-Deuce — was the heart of the debauchery and hedonism that New York was known for at that time. Decked out B-boys, spandex-clad clubgoers, and dolled up prostitutes with their pimps all come to life in these vibrant photographs.

This book is a fascinating glimpse into NYC’s graffiti scene. Simultaneously celebrated as artists and derided as criminals, the subjects pose, but mask their faces. Because these artists work in secret, this book provides a rare insight into the underground street culture.