Making Marks is a project I initiated at an Art Residency at De-Construkt in Red Hook, Brooklyn, New York September 2018. Before going there I knew very little about the history and contemporary setting of the area. Mainly associated it with A View from the Bridge, by American playwright Arthur Miller and reading some articles about how it has changed from a troubled area in the past to current gentrification developments.

As an illustrator interested in reportage and creating strong visual narratives, Red Hook proved to be a place rich in inspiration for my work. The raw energy and friendliness of the people was such an appeal.

During my art residency, the idea was to create work based on the theme of the flâneur. The concept of flâneur comes from the French noun meaning “saunterer” or “stroller,” which directed my work by exploring the urban environments of Brooklyn and Manhattan and recording the experience through illustration. This concept gave a number of interesting ideas for practical work with the focus on the individual’s experience of the everyday in an urban environment. This included “How does the individual experience the everyday? How to depict this in my work?” 

During the time in the residency, I focused much of my work on the defining features of Red Hook - its history in the shipping industry; neighborhood staples such as Fairway and Rita Cafe, where I spent many of her mornings for breakfast; and an American culture seen only so vividly by a visitor - as well as locations around Union St., downtown Brooklyn, and midtown Manhattan. Allowing the element of surprise, of the unexpected to occur by drawing whatever I found or focused on that particular area of Red Hook.

Making Marks involved a series of reportage drawings and visually communicated the overall impression gained from this unique experience. Also the residency involved show casing this project in collaboration with the De_Construkt zine.