Exhibitions: Click! A Crowd-Curated Exhibition

Andrew Vernon-Jones. Boys Before School, Red Hook, 2008. All rights reserved

Artist Statement

Two boys pause for the camera on their way to school in Red Hook. Their faces convey a youthful innocence while their cigars suggest harsh changes that may be underway as they come of age in the projects. Red Hook has been called Brooklyn's next up-and-coming neighborhood, but today retains its working class character. A large majority of residents still live in the public Red Hook Houses. When the region's biggest Ikea store opens there this year, we will see how the community is affected, and how the changes show on faces like these. (Hasselblad 120mm film camera.)

9 Comments

So evocative, this image - and the artist's statement defines "changes" in Brooklyn(ites) in a very intriguing way. Beautiful and complicated image.

Even after reading the caption, I still am a bit unclear about the effectivenss of the image for the intended subject.

excellent photograph.

Spontaneous street portraiture at its best. I love the kid on the left's hat pulled low over his eyes.

I liked this shot as "brooklyn now" but it doesn't speak to me of the changes to come. As the artist says "we will see how..." which means to me that the picture that supports the theme is yet to be taken.

this picture is striking because it captures the universal feeling of being young and thinking you know it all while the world continues to change all around you. the cigars a classic touch

Great take on the theme. The boys with cigars remind me of a young Al Capone, who smoked stogies on the streets of Red Hook, too.

SMOKING IS BAD — Posted by anonymous

nice shot. Did not think kids underage smoked in the US anymore... — Posted by Ign