Tag Archive | East Village

Gem Spa Bodega Transforms Into a schitibank

Oct15

Gem Spa Schitibank
All Photos By Gail

If you’ve passed by Gem Spa, the legendary East Village bodega that is home to the city’s Best Egg Cream (#BestEggCream) at any point since September 11th of this year, you may have done a double, or even a triple take. We know that St. Mark’s Place has become increasingly gentrified, but is Gem Spa now a bank, or wait, what is going on here, exactly?

Gem Spa Schitibank

While it has been rumored that a citibank is slated to take over the corner lot which has been home to  Gem Spa since 1957, fear not: this an art installation meant to draw attention to, but also satirize, the phenomenon known as “Disappearing New York.” It isn’t very pretty.

Disclaimer text running across the bottom of the sign above reads:

schitibank has kept the historical appeal to this building to absorb their customer base. This schiti location is not affiliated with any other schiti locations. We don’t mean to gentrify, as schitibank is co-opting this space with Gem Spa to bring you an authentic banking, egg cream and vaping experience. Every customer is on surveillance cameras. Smile, you’re on camera.

Schitibank Storefront

The Gem Spa Schitibank installation is the work of Tommy Noonan and Doug Cameron of boutique marketing firm DCX Growth Accelerator, who are known for their ‘Artisanal’ publicity stunts (Google them and be very impressed).

Gem Spa Schitibank
Click Image to Enlarge So You Can Read the Fine Print!

God is definitely in the details here. Promotional posters for the ‘bank’s’ various perks and services include artwork by Robert Mapplethorpe as well as the likenesses of The New York Dolls, Patti Smith, Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac.

Gem Spa Schitibank
Click Image to Enlarge for Detail

Gem Spa Schitibank

Gem Spa Schitibank Exterior

We clearly do not need another bank in the village (or anywhere in NYC, for that matter) but we do need a cool bodega that’s been around forever, and we need our delicious egg creams! Gem Spa is located at the southwest corner of 2nd Avenue and St. Mark’s Place. Drop in and drop some cash next time you’re in the hood. Better yet, make a special trip to visit, so you can see the schitibank installation before they take it down!

Gem Spa Schitibank

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Happy Pride Month, NYC!

Jun23

Have Some Pride By Royce Bannon
Photos By Gail

NYC has really gone all out for Pride Month and it is so great to see everybody getting into the spirit of love and unity.  With so much inspiring signage and art work popping up everywhere you look, it’s challenging to document even a small fraction of it, but I was walking home from brunch this past Saturday and passed by this storefront mural by Royce Bannon (AKA @Roycer_700), which currently resides on Avenue A near East 3rd Street. It appears to have gone up in the past few weeks specifically in honor of Pride Month and will like stay up as long as it can.

Have Some Pride By Royce Bannon

The Rainbow “Monsters” are Bannon’s signature characters, which he incorporates into much of his public artwork.

Royce Bannon Pride Mural

Happy Pride, Everyone!

Pink Thing of The Day: Pinky’s Space

Mar29

Pinky's Space
Photos By Gail

Pinky’s Space is an adorable little French / Southern Comfort Food restaurant that always has something fantastically Pink and eye-catching displayed in its front window. When I passed by on a recent Saturday afternoon, I had to cross the street to get a snap of this adorable Pink Gorilla and his little Japanese friend, Domo. I want to eat there.

Pinky’s Space is Located at 70 East 1st Street (Just West of First Avenue), East Village New York City

Pinky's Space

Here’s A Second Photo Without The To-Go Coffee Cup!

Frank Ape Metamorphosis Mural

Mar19

Frank Ape Butterfly Mural
Photos By Gail

“Let Go of Who You Were, to Become Who You Are.” — Frank Ape

This fun and inspiring mural can be found on the security gate at East Village Collective, a vintage clothing store located at 545 East 12th Street (Between A and B), East Village, NYC. The mural went up in April of 2018.

Frank Ape Butterfly Mural

Jimi Hendrix Mural On Security Gate

Mar12

Mikey Likes It Jimi Hendrix Mural
Photos By Gail

I spotted this fabulous Jimi Hendrix mural as I was out for a post-snowstorm stroll through my East Village neighborhood one Saturday afternoon. The mural can be found on the security gate for Mikey Likes It, an ice cream shop located at 199 Avenue A. According to their website, Mikey Likes It is the world’s first Pop Culture-inspired premium ice cream brand! I’ll have to make a point to stop by for a cone during their regular business hours!

Mikey Likes It Jimi Hendrix Mural

Pink Thing of The Day: Pink #1 Balloon

Feb22

Pink #1 Balloon
All Photos By Gail

Standing on Avenue B and looking east down 8th Street, I saw an unidentifiable Pink Thing that caught my eye, and I went to investigate. Because: Pink Thing.

Pink #1 Balloon

It was a bright Pink Mylar Balloon in the shape of a Number 1! Someone had tethered it to the railing running around the side of the Church of St. Brigid, which is situated at that corner. The balloon’s origin remains a mystery.

Pink #1 Balloon

Who’s Number 1? You are, baby.

 

Pink Thing Of The Day: Discarded Pink Desk

Nov30

Discarded Pink Desk
All Photos By Gail

The only reason I happened to walk by this dismantled Pink Desk, abandoned at the curb of an East Village side street waiting to be carried off to the landfill, is that it was a public holiday and I had an appointment with a plate of Perogi at Veselka. If you look closely, you’ll see a pair of horn-shaped protuberances peaking out from behind the drawer, which has been pulled out and laid on the desk surface, and you can extrapolate that this was once a young girl’s Vanity table that is now missing its mirror.

Discarded Pink Desk

I bet it was well-loved by its previous owner. Maybe, after I went on my way, someone picked it up and took it home to make a few repairs and give it a new life. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.