6 Comments on New York Shitty Day Starter: North 12 Street Tough Love

bestviewinbrooklyn on Fri, 15th May 2009 8:18 am


When I read it (prior to seeing the widescreen with the prostitution references), I thought the graffiti “poor poor me” was part of the *piece* as a whole. I found it refreshingly sardonic.

I seriously doubt that the young lady pictured in the poster is actually from out of the country. Seems suspect to me. But then I’m a scorpio, and everything seems suspect.

bamilt0 on Fri, 15th May 2009 12:02 pm


Maybe–just maybe–she’s not actually good at anything. I know it’s heresy, what with not one but TWO degrees in fine arts, but I’m thinking she might just actually suck at what she’s tried to do. Sorry kid. We gots plenty of ar-teests to go ’round.

Tony From Kent Street on Fri, 15th May 2009 12:38 pm


Yeah, being a non-rich artist in new york does kind of suck. I’m not going to paste it on a wall, but it’s still true. I know a ton of artists from outside the US (duh, it’s NYC) that are in the same boat. I’ve been spending all my free time, money and patience for over ten years trying to make it.. shit, trying to sell a single piece. It’s rough out there and i do not see any light at the end of this tunnel. It seems that being an artist is one of the few professions where you can kill your credit, relationships, time and get zero sympathy from anyone about it. So piss off world. And I’m not sure how you can tell what country someone is from by looking at one picture, but I am not a scorpio.

Rebecca11222 on Fri, 15th May 2009 5:49 pm


1) if you are in the any of the arts and do NOT have to work in a field other than the one you chose in order to survive, you are very, very lucky (either in terms of wealthy relatives or in terms of landing that arts gig). Even if you do get a job in your field, it may not pay enough to be your sole source of income.

2) if you have enough money to pick up and leave the country (as this person does), you really are not so bad off.

missheather on Fri, 15th May 2009 11:47 pm


If someone wants a steady paycheck he (or she) does not seek an advanced education— much less a career in the arts— be it visual, performing, the written word, etc. I knew this when I went for my BFA. I knew this when I went for by MFA. To be certain it didn’t sit well with me when, as a newly minted MFA recipient, I was turned down work because I was “over-educated”. But on some intuitive level I knew that would be part of the bargain.

The sad fact is our society does not place a lot of value on creativity (unless of course it can be patented) and I for one think this is not only a shame, but it also very short-sighted. If we really wanted to cut down on juvenile crime and recidivism we would have encourage the arts, not build more prisons. Very few folks are bona fide, hard core criminals. Most fall under the influence of others because:

1. they lack opportunities
2. they feel hopeless
3. they feel like no one cares

In a nutshell: these people have no voice. What’s worse: no one is listening. We should.

Not everyone is cut out to be a lawyer, doctor or scientist. This does not make them/us any less valuable to society as a whole: only different.

The previous diatribe having been written, what gets me about this poster is the choice of wording: “I WANTED”— not “I AM” or “I HAVE (DONE X,Y,Z)”— followed by bullet points.

I’m sorry if I sound cynical but everyone does not get what he (or she) wants. This is not necessarily a bad thing— especially if you have the right attitude. Throwing one toys out of the proverbial pram is most decidedly not the right attitude.

The other thing that gets me about this flier is the response, e.g.; it was posted by (what appears to be) a woman and someone saw fit to inscribe via marker suggested rates for a blow job, anal sex, etc. Do you think this would have happened if the face gracing this flier was that of a man?

Think about it.

rheingold on Sat, 16th May 2009 5:05 am


I’m disturbed with her choice of typeface for the poster. Copperplate? Takes me back to they days (hundreds of years ago) when I was working for a junkmail agency. Copperplate was the official font of the Diocese of Boston, and used in His Eminence the Cardinal’s bulk-mail appeals for dough.

No good for a hipster poster in 2009, though. Maybe she’s just a typography class away from hitting the big time.

And I didn’t initially pick up the “I wanted” thing. I thought the “I” was just a stray left bracket. Brackets are so overused, but enough with the type-nerd stuff already.

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