Pretty, Vacant: A Slideshow of Abandoned New York

"Pretty, Vacant: A Slideshow of Abandoned New York"

In October 2009, I was invited by the Open City Dialogue lecture series to present a selection of my photographs of abandoned New York. In a presentation titled "Pretty, Vacant: A Slideshow of Abandoned New York," I traced the evolution of my photography of New York City, beginning with the San Francisco Navy Yard, which has long been a source of inspiration. The presention explored Red Hook and Brooklyn's industrial waterfront, before expanding out into a variety of sites around Manhattan, Staten Island, the Bronx and Queens.

The lecture was previewed by Time Out New York, which described the photographs as "eye-opening (and sublimely beautiful)." The lecture was also a pick of The NY Times, which wrote "photographer Nathan Kensinger is an inveterate trespasser, climbing around the city’s abandoned buildings and decaying waterfronts to chronicle them. His work... uncovers some of the last unseen parts of New York." In a related article, Flavor Pill wrote that these photos "evoke nostalgia for a New York that most of us never witnessed."

Please note: the slideshow above is a slightly condensed version of the original presentation, and does not include narration.