7th to 11th to 2nd to 9th to Smith to 4th to the BQE to Flushing…
I miss Bushwick Ave because I'm distracted by a vaguely interesting empty lot – filled with burners, dogs and broken TVs. I don't stop. Dekalb – I know you, pull the left and follow it out until is ends at a cemetery. I can see the Empire State building off to the left, so it's another left along Wordward Ave. I’ve found Flushing again, but which way? I should've checked that map a bit closer. Right it is. Flushing crosses Metropolitan; I'm in the right area but how much further until I hit Queens?
I should back up here for a moment: it was a chilly day in Brooklyn, the sky was a dull grey and the temperature was hovering just above 30°. I had heard about a REVS/HOPE installation here in Bushwick and I knew that with a bit of luck and some footwork it was mine for the finding.
The street went underground for a bit and I realized I was definitely in Queens. Too far. Turning around in a maze of one way streets was harder than it looked but the process yielded some interesting spots for a future expedition. Back on Flushing, heading south I spot a mural by Robots Will Kill- legally done, but still pretty cool. It covers a couple of sides of an art supply shop / cement factory.
This is about as far as I'm going to get in the car. Parking is easy around here and so I pull up next to a weathered brick building. The Robots Will Kill crew have done a good job with the mural, even if it is oddly reminiscent of Os Gemeos. Wandering, I spot the REVS sculpture a couple of blocks away.
Further down a couple of huge fill-ins run the length of a building: CURTIS, RIP-OFF & STER have been killing north Brooklyn for the past couple of years.
A factory to my right, another to my left and a block long scrap yard / used auto parts depot behind me.
Looking around I can only imagine what this place is like at night. It must be completely desolate. I notice paint splashed 30 feet up on the side of a factory; they must have had some sort of catapult or launcher.
All of a sudden, the hilarious “spring break” graffiti I had been seeing up and down the block seemed justified.
At night, these blocks are a free for all spring break for the art kids living in these (illegal) conversions; real estate is still cheap out here and you can fit a lot of people into a few thousand square feet.
I walked more, found some really amazing walls, Polaroid'ed a bit, and poked around on some freight tracks before heading home.
Despite the numb fingers, I had a good feeling about Bushwick.
Flushing to Navy, to Water and Front, Furman to Columbia and Union to 5th.
