New York Daily Photo Analytics

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Mother Nature

I have had this photo for some time but knew nothing of the advertiser - Rowley. But the setting was so dramatic, I thought I would share it anyway. After all, we can let things speak for themselves on occasion, can't we?
This illuminated billboard was located on the West Side Highway in Chelsea, a neighborhood in the West 20s, abutting the Hudson River and the highway. Chelsea has become somewhat of an art district, as there has been a migration of galleries from areas like SoHo due to extraordinarily high rents.
I am not a fan of billboards - I find that they are typically a blight on the landscape. But there can be beauty, particularly dramatic beauty, at times with industrial and commercial subjects. Smokestacks, oil refineries, bridges, power plants and power lines can all show a striking profile when the lighting conditions are right. I have written of this before in my posting Hell's Gate.
I don't think I want to champion this type of display or give encouragement for more signage and billboards. And I think the credit here goes to Mother Nature, not Rowley ...

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I like the silhouette. Its more like how it looks in passing

indieperfumes said...

nice. sometimes in NYC you get those
Turner skies crossed with a moderne structure, and this is one of those times...

Jane Hards Photography said...

I'd go along with the Turner skies. You can't beat mother nature's palette, but you can photograph it. Awesome.

Anonymous said...

The ad's for Target (note the bull's eye logo in the lower right-hand corner of the billboard). Cynthia Rowley is a famous designer who has a line there.

Tuga7 said...

nice capture!