Bleecker: The Book
The project….
Bleecker: A Photographic Portrait is a fine art photography book celebrating the people, businesses, and everyday life of Manhattan's West and South Village through the snapshots of those who lived and worked there.
Created by sisters Cybele and Danielle Policastro, the book features a curated collection of photographs taken on or adjacent to Bleecker Street from the late 1930s through approximately 1960, preserving a neighborhood and way of life before it changed forever.
Born in New York's West Village, Cybele and Danielle are the descendants of a family that owned and operated a fruit and vegetable store on the corner of Bleecker Street and West 10th Street for generations. Their lifelong connection to the neighborhood inspired this project.
Cybele Policastro is an Emmy Award-winning editor for Good Morning America and the creator of Bleecker Street Beat, a blog and Instagram account dedicated to documenting the history of Bleecker Street and Greenwich Village.
Danielle Policastro is an award-winning designer and Art Director at The University of Texas at Austin. Together, the sisters have spent years researching, preserving, and documenting the history of one of New York City's most iconic neighborhoods.
We're Looking for Photographs
We're searching for snapshots that capture everyday life in and around Bleecker Street during the 1930s through 1960.
We're especially interested in photographs of:
Families and friends
Storefronts and local businesses
Children playing
Street scenes
Holidays and celebrations
Neighborhood events
Everyday life in the Village
The photographs should have been taken on or near Bleecker Street in Manhattan and be owned by the person sharing them.
At this stage, we're simply interested in viewing photographs to see whether they may be a good fit for the book.
Your Photographs Remain Yours
No photograph will ever be published without the owner's written permission. If a photograph is selected, we will obtain a signed release before it is reproduced. There is absolutely no obligation to contribute images.
We're also happy to meet in person to look through albums or boxes of photographs if that's easier.
If you know someone who may have photographs from Bleecker Street or the surrounding Village, we'd be grateful for an introduction.
Thank you for helping preserve the history of this remarkable neighborhood.
Contact
Cybele Policastro & Danielle Policastro
Bleecker: A Photographic Portrait
Email: info@bleeckerbook.com
Instagram: @bleeckerstreetbeat
Website: www.bleeckerstreetbeat.com