ESSENTIAL SERVICES / COVID-19

Essential Services / COVID-19

I started shooting around with my pre-Chernobyl Kiev 10 camera and its 20mm Mir lens when the Covid-19 closures started in New York City. I soon realized that the only places that were open for business here in Brooklyn where I live, and open to be photographed, were those deemed “essential services” by New York State.

I started out with the idea of including a broad range of essential services, those both obvious and those arguably not so essential. I took a pic of the window of a Mexican restaurant where its To-Go cocktails were listed under a bright illuminated Corona sign. Besides being cheesy and not a great photo, by the time I was finishing up the series things had turned a bit more serious.

A bit ominous. Deaths from the pandemic had gotten within a couple degrees of separation to me and I understand the stark reality that they might very well get closer. Along with this sense of foreboding came a renewed sense of appreciation for the essential services still available and respect and gratitude to the people who deliver them.

March 31, 2020