"It’s so magical. It’s so inspiring."
A museum in Queens, a traveling hot dog cart, and a Rick Pitino podcast #74
This week my colleague Haidee Chu published a story about the Living Museum, on the sprawling Creedmoor campus.
I saw the photos first, uploaded into our Slack channel, and I couldn’t wait for it to be published. Haidee perfectly captured the beauty and importance of the space, showcasing the artistic talents of the inpatients and outpatients who’ve spent time there.
From the story:
Creedmoor had once been a world unto itself, housing in the late 1950s some 7,000 patients who farmed, raised livestock and lived on its 300-acre grounds. The psych center came to host giant kitchens, gymnasiums, even a theater and a power plant.
But outrage over the conditions inside America’s overcrowded mental institutions, plus a new generation of psychotropic drugs that promised to alleviate symptoms for many people living with severe mental illnesses, eventually hollowed out Creedmoor.
By the time former Creedmoor psychologist Dr. Janos Marton and Polish artist Bolek Greczynski co-founded the art studio and museum in 1983, just 1,300 inpatients remained on the desolating campus.
It’s now home to decades of paintings, murals, and installations by artists who spent time there, and inspired similar museums around the world to showcase people living with mental illness.
Visits are by appointment only, and I can’t wait to get over there.
⭐ Two stories I worked on this week were focused on last week’s FBI raids. Just the day before her homes were raided, Adams officials added her to a list of staff who have substantial policy discretion.
And what’s the deal with the New World Mall?
Also this week in THE CITY:
The Brian Benjamin bribery charges are back.
An explainer on flood insurance.
Some help for people being released from prison.
✨Other interesting stories✨
Portugal, The Man brings a hot dog roller on tour [THE STRATEGIST]
A deep dive into the NYPD’s bizarre tweets [AP]
All the food pop-ups in March [EATER]
What about the bagel sticks? My teacher friends LOVE the bagel sticks [CHALKBEAT]
The latest on the city’s federal migrant money [DAILY NEWS]
🎧LISTEN🎧
We’re headed into the Big East Tournament next week, and then the big tournament. For better or for worse, I am a fan of St. John’s men’s basketball, so I listened intently to this Rick Pitino-focused episode of “Pablo Torre Finds Out.” It is fascinating and surprising even when I know Pitino cares so much about winning he’s threatened his players. Dive into the many rabbit holes, and in spite of it all, let’s go Johnnies. [YOUTUBE]
thanks for reading!