Meryl Meisler: Paradise Lost – Bushwick Era Disco

Parallel Pictures Press proudly presents New York PARADISE LOST Bushwick Era Disco, Meryl Meisler’s scintillating new book that will launch with exhibits at ClampArt and The Center for Photography at Woodstock.

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Parallel Pictures Press proudly presents New York Paradise Lost Bushwick Era Disco, Meryl Meisler’s scintillating new book that will launch with exhibits at ClampArt and The Center for Photography at Woodstock.

New York PARADISE LOST Bushwick Era Disco is an intimate journey to the pandemonium and paradise of the 1970s through early 1990s New York City. Meryl documented a tumultuous time in NYC’s history – epidemics of arson, crime, crack, and AIDS, intensified by a pa alyzing blackout, political and fiscal crisis. Frequenting Manhattan’s legendary discos that arose amongst disorder, she captured hedonistic havens, celebrities, and revelers of the night. In contrast, daylight revealed the beauty of those who loved and thrived in burnt-out Bushwick, where she was a public school art teacher who photographed what she saw.

“The mind is its own place and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven.”

— John Milton, Paradise Lost —

Her effervescent images are personal memoir – love letters filled with compassion and humor mixed with angst, kept secret for decades until she retired from teaching. Meryl was headed to Studio54 the night of the ‘77 Blackout; the next day, she and the world heard of Bushwick, a hellish neighborhood where fires and looting erupted. In 2013, at BIZARRE, a Bushwick Drag / Burlesque Nightclub, she noticed a disco ball in the restroom, another over the dance floor. OMG – an epiphany! Bushwick was now THE sizzling club scene. The disparate worlds of Bushwick and Disco collided, becoming intertwining strands of NYC’s story and her journey. She realized the two bodies of work belonged together.

Meryl’s internationally acclaimed books, A Tale of Two Cities Disco Era Bushwick (2014) and Purgatory & Paradise SASSY ‘70s Suburbia & The City (2015) were just tips of the iceberg. She kept digging into her archive, finding hidden treasures. New York PARADISE LOST Bushwick Era Disco takes a unique turn, from clandestine clubs into the classroom – students and staff creating a safer space to learn despite societal ills of poverty and prejudice. Her street photos radiate the joys of daily life amidst hardship. The nightlife images expose the edgiest, darkest activities she has ever shown. Flash forward four decades: Bushwick is a hub of new music, art, fashion, literature, nightlife, and creative thinking. Many bemoan the gentrification of neighborhoods like Bushwick. There are nostalgia and sorrow for what’s lost in the process of change.

New York PARADISE LOST Bushwick Era Disco shows that people can find calm amid chaos, rediscover and rebuild. It resonates today as communities worldwide struggle to cope and recover from the pandemic. New York PARADISE LOST Bushwick Era Disco is a true story of the resilient human spirit – determination to preserve, revitalize, appreciate, and create anew.

ClampArt

June 3 – July 9, 2021
Opening Reception and Book Signing Sat., June 5th, 2021 | 2:00 – 7 p.m. 247 W. 29 St. NY, NY, 10001 ground floo clampart.com 

The Center for Photography at Woodstock

July 3 – August 15, 2021
Book Signing – Sat. July 3 & Sun. July 4 | 12 – 2 p.m. 59 Tinker Street, Woodstock, NY 12498
cpw.org

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Submission
Dodho Magazine accepts submissions from emerging and professional photographers from around the world.
Their projects can be published among the best photographers and be viewed by the best professionals in the industry and thousands of photography enthusiasts. Dodho magazine reserves the right to accept or reject any submitted project. Due to the large number of presentations received daily and the need to treat them with the greatest respect and the time necessary for a correct interpretation our average response time is around 5/10 business days in the case of being accepted. This is the information you need to start preparing your project for its presentation.
To send it, you must compress the folder in .ZIP format and use our Wetransfer channel specially dedicated to the reception of works. Links or projects in PDF format will not be accepted. All presentations are carefully reviewed based on their content and final quality of the project or portfolio. If your work is selected for publication in the online version, it will be communicated to you via email and subsequently it will be published.
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