New York has always fascinated both visitors and locals, some of them musicians, other writers, but many of them visual artists or photographers. It’s no wonder this iconic metropolis has inspired generations of creative minds. Its charisma infuses every borough and corner; everywhere you look you can see something waiting to be transformed into a work of art by finding the right composition and clicking a button. It used to be Hasselblads and Leicas, now it’s iPhones and Android phones.
The result is just as striking – it’s a place seen through the eyes of talented, creative artists who want to present their own version of a city everyone recognizes. “There are so many stories you can shoot, so many ways you can develop a style in this city,” 19-year old Antonio Jaggie says. He’s one of the more popular young photographers on Instagram, with over 200k followers who are fans of his work. Jaggie, or @kostennn as he is better known, shoots images that beautifully chronicle a part of New York hidden from tourists’ eyes. Derelict warehouses with graffiti-filled walls, biker gangs, skateboarders, and urban car racers populate his images, along with subway stations and abandoned industrial spaces. The glamorous side of the Big Apple is also presented, but in a different way.
The artist climbs tall skyscrapers to capture panoramas full of bright lights, traffic stopped in motion, a slice of the busy city that never sleeps. These are the two sides of Jaggie’s New York: a sprawling metropolis full of life but also a place where various subcultures can thrive and add flavor to a city that seems more captivating than ever. Photography by Antonio Jaggie.
