Robot

16x20 inch Black & White print on Epson Art Cotton Smooth 250 gram paper. From the NYC Village Halloween Parade, 1982–86.

A high-contrast black-and-white 35mm capture from the mid-eighties NYC Village Halloween Parade features a participant in an elaborate, do-it-yourself robot costume. The boxy metallic suit is adorned with analog controls, including a small screen and various buttons that catch the intense illumination from a powerful professional strobe light. Behind this central figure, the dark streets of Greenwich Village are filled with a diverse crowd, including a man in a wide-brimmed hat and glasses, and another reveler dressed as a medieval swordsman. This candid street scene, taken between 1982 and 1986, uses black-and-white tones to emphasize the retro-futuristic textures of the DIY ensemble against the night-time urban backdrop. The composition preserves the playful, low-tech ingenuity that defined the creative spirit of the parade during this era.