Slideshow Jan 15, 2010, in Riverside, CA (Near UC Riverside)

I've recently moved to Riverside, CA, as a grad student in the Public History program at UC Riverside. This will be my first slideshow/presentation in my new home state, and many thanks to Terry and Melissa Tippie for the chance to do it at their gallery.

This is also my first chance to show pictures from my trip to Eastern Europe this past summer! Amazing tunnels and excellent adventures in Moscow, Kiev, and Odessa. You can see some samples on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/organize/?start_tab=one_set72157622892006485

Slideshow!

January 15, 2010

At Shutterstories (gallery/studio space), 981 Iowa Ave., Riverside CA 92507

Doors open at 7pm, come and have a drink or a snack

I start showing pictures at 8pm.

Generally these run about 45 minutes of me presenting, plus time afterwards for questions.

Info below is taken from "15 Favorite Things to do in Riverside" by The Riverside Arts Council:

Urban Explorations   Shutterstories Steve Duncan is a veteran of urban exploration, he has been exploring tunnels and other inaccessible underground places in New York since 1996, and has photographed tunnels underneath Paris, London, Rome, Naples, Stockholm, Berlin, Montreal, Toronto, Chicago, and many other cities. He began taking pictures because he was fascinated by what he found underground in the city, and wanted a way to capture and convey what he was seeing: labyrinths of utility tunnels, glorious cityscapes from inaccessible rooftops, graffiti murals that only a handful of people would ever see, or century-old underground spaces. His photos have appeared in publications including the New York Times, The New York Post, The New York Sun, and Men's Journal, and other. In 2004 and 2005 he hosted the Discovery Channel show "Urban Explorers,' and more recently has appeared on the History Channel as an expert on New York City's underground. When: January 15, 2009 there will be a slide show presentation.  Steve will share his experiences as an "Urban Explorer" and thrill us with his surreal captions of the world's underground. Gallery viewing and refreshments will be from 7:00 - 8:00 p.m.  "Urban Explorations" from 8:00 - 9:00 p.m.  Stay & Chat with Steve from 9:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. Where: Shutterstories, 981 Iowa Ave., Riverside CA 92507  For more information please call 951-683-3444

Photo on cover of novel "My Dead Body"

The recently-published horror/mystery novel My Dead Body features one of my photos from underneath London as part of the cover art:

Resource Magazine - Underground Locations

Resource Magazine

Fall 2009

Creative Time Video

A short video about me, shot and produced by Howard Silver for Creative Time, is here:http://creativetime.org/programs/archive/2009/cttv/?p=138

urbanautica.com - "Memories from the Underground"

Some of my photos are being shown on the excellent photography site Urbanautica.com.
On the website: http://www.urbanautica.com/blog/steve-duncan/ (In Italian by default, but you can change to English)
Via Facebook feed: http://www.facebook.com/pages/urbanautica/84597496009

"An Urban Spelunker Pursues His Vision," The Westsider, June 18 2009, Front Page

"An Urban Spelunker Pursues His Vision" 

The Westsider

June 18 2009, Front Page

Article by Ryann Liebenthal, front page photo by Steve Duncan

 

Website of the Week at the Evening Leader Newspaper, North Wales

So I was in Russia, running through tunnels under Moscow and being terrified of the militisia (sort of the federal police), when I got this email:

to: steve@undercity.org
date: Fri, Jun 5, 2009 at 6:10 PM
subject: Website of the week

Hi Steve,
Your site has made it onto our website of the week column at the Evening Leader newspaper in North Wales...Keep up the good work. My editor particularly loves your New York photography.
http://www.eveningleader.co.uk/breaktime/Best-of-the-web-.5335134.jp

Cheers,
Mark

 I gotta admit, I was definitely a bit excited about this. North Wales is one of those areas that seemed more legend than reality when I was reading about it as a child. It contained the kingdom of Gwynedd, the Llŷn Peninsula, and has a mountain range called Snowdonia. Rivers have names like the River Dyfrdwy, the River Conwy, and the River Dyfi. Anyone who ever read Lloyd Alexander as a child and fell in love with Princess Eilonwy will doubtless understand my excitement over this part of the world.

Anyway, regardless of my love of Welsh names, I know I'm in good company because Mark's "Best of the Web" column, in follwing weeks, also included things like Alias' excellent photography (mostly of sites in the UK) at http://www.guerillaphotography.fotopic.net/, and Tom Kirsch's - AKA Motts - beautiful photos (primarily from sites in the NYC region) at http://www.opacity.us.

Solo Show at the BoConcept Store in Cambridge, MA, May 21-June 21, 2009

A selection of nineteen of my photographs are being shown at the BoConcept Store in Cambridge, MA from May 21-June 30, 2009

Location:

BoConcept Cambridge

999 Mass Ave

Cambridge, MA 02138

Tel. 617 588 7777

On the cable of the GW Bridge - With permission!

New York Post
April 14, 2009
Article by Don Kaplan
My deepest thanks to Don for taking me along as the photographer on such a fun assignment! Don is an excellent writer and a deeply interested & thoughtful reporter. It's too bad that it didn't get more space to run-- I think that there should have been more of both his article and my photos.

Hudson River Railroad- Question for Readers:

Dear Readers,

I'm trying to determine for sure when the Hudson River Railroad along Manhattan's West Side Line first opened, and specifically when the first railroad bridge opened that carried the line across the Spuyten Duyvil Creek. Can you help?

According to this 1988 article from the NY Times, the railroad:

"...crossed Spuyten Duyvil Creek, now the Harlem River, on a wooden drawbridge. The bridge was built no later than 1848, when service was extended to Fishkill. Later, service was extended to Albany, and points west and north."

http://www.nytimes.com/1988/03/06/realestate/streetscapes-spuyten-duyvil-swing-bridge-restoring-a-link-in-the-city-s-lifeline.html(This statement is already a bit suspect because the mouth of Spuyten Duyvil Creek is not technically the "Harlem River," but is rather part of the Harlem River Ship Canal that connects the Hudson and Harlem Rivers.)

A more comprehensive, but contradictory history of the bridge is here:
http://www.washington-heights.us/history/archives/spuyten_duyvil_swing_bridge_30.html
This article by James Renner says that "The New York & Hudson River Railroad was incorporated on May 6, 1847" and that:

The first tracks were opened on September 29, 1849, running from Manhattan (Chambers Street) to Peekskill along the eastern shore of the Hudson River. By December 31st of that year, the system was extended to Poughkeepsie and then finally to Albany. At the Spuyten Duyvil a wooden trestle was constructed to connect Manhattan with the Bronx.

So we have 1848 and 1849... and on top of that I've also seen 1851. Of course I'm more inclined to believe James Renner's account, as his detail is much more extensive. But does anyone have any authoritative references or primary sources on this? Please email me at steve@undercity.org

Article by Bill Wheeler & Josh Yaffa: "Urban Cowboys" on Good.is

"Urban Cowboys"
by William Wheeler & Joshua Yaffa
GOOD Magazine online, 4/16/09
http://www.good.is/?p=14862

Into the Night: Night Photography Symposium at B&H

I was recently invited to speak at a day-long symposium on night photography at B&H Photo in New York, organized by Jill Waterman (author of the recent book Night and Low Light Photography). Also on the panel were some very accomplished photographers, whose work I've admired in the past, including Tom Paiva, Mark Jeremko, Lance Keimig, Helen Garber, and Daryl-Ann Saunders. I felt very privileged to be included.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/find/eventDetails.jsp/id/342 
Monday, March 9, 2009  |  10:30 AM - 4:30 PM

Photo courtesy of Tom Dowling/TomBrooklyn

NY Post: Notes from the Underground

"Notes from the Underground," New York Post, 3/6/09
Story by Don Kaplan, photos by Steve Duncan
Had a great time working on this story with Don Kaplan, who writes a fascinating set of feature stories for the New York Post.

Article:
http://www.nypost.com/seven/03062009/entertainment/notes_from_the_underground_158320.htm 

Photo Gallery:
http://www.nypost.com/photos/galleries/entertainment/pp_20090306_mole/photo01.htm

"Night Moves: Angles of View" @ Farmani Gallery, March 5-April 11 2009

Four of my photos will be included in "Night Moves," a group show of night photography curated by Jill Waterman and Daryl-Ann Saunders. This is a two-part show taking place in two galleries at once: "Night Moves: Angles of View" in the Farmani Gallery and "Night Moves: Exploring the Horizon" at the Safe-T-Gallery in the same building.

Opening: Thursday March 5th, 6-8pm
At the Farmani Gallery in DUMBO, 111 Front Street, Suite 212, Brooklyn.
March 5 - April 11, 2009
Hours: Wed-Sat 12-6pm

Photos at Life Cafe, Bushwick, Brooklyn, through March 2009

Some of my photos are on view at Life Cafe, an excellent bar/restaurant/cafe at 983 Flushing Avenue (at Central Avenue) in Bushwick, Brooklyn, near the Morgan Avenue L train stop. Good place for dinner or a weekend brunch, or just a quick beer. Come visit!

e-Oculus: Sewers Reveal Deep Topography Below

Review of my slideshow at the Center for Architecture on 1/27/09, by Lisa Delgado in the 2/24/09 issue of e-Oculus (publication of the AIA New York). 
http://www.aiany.org/eOCULUS/newsletter/?p=2405

The Architect's Newspaper Blog: Underground Man

Review of slideshow at the Center For Architecture by Julia Galef:

 http://blog.archpaper.com/wordpress/2009/02/12/nderground-man/

Welt Der Wunder, February 2009 (photo credits)

Welt Der Wunder, February 2009 (German)
Article on underground NYC
Photo credits on five of the images used

Catasterist.com, review of AIA slideshow

A nice review of my 1/27/09 slideshow for the AIA-NY at the Center for Architecture. Thanks Kirsten!
http://catasterist.com/2009/01/about-the-night-before-last/

Slideshow at the Center for Architecture, January 27 2009

Thanks to all who came to my January 27th slideshow/lecture at the Center for Architecture, Building Over the Past: The Hidden Layers of the City.

The 100+ seats in the venue were completely filled, and I was flattered to see that some people were willing to stand through it as well. My deepest thanks to John Steigerwald for organizing the event; to Jesse Lazar and the Center for Architecture for hosting it; and to the AIA and all architects who came.

This was the first time I'd had the chance to present any of my photos from sewers and underground rivers in London, Rome, NYC, Newark, Buffalo, Hartford, and various cities in Northern England. I was very happy to have the chance to show these, although the slideshow went longer than I wanted, and I think that for future presentations this year I'll have to divide it into two talks: one focusing on urban waterways and the development of sewers and bridges, and the other on general urban underground layers.

I love sharing my work with an audience, and if you or your organization are interested in discussing the possibility of me doing a slideshow presentation in the upcoming year, please contact me.