With the influx of Jewish Yiddish-speaking immigrants to New York, the audience for Yiddish publications grew. Forward publisher Louis Miller proposed the title Forverts – Forward in English – transliterated from Vorwärts, the German Socialist Democratic party newspaper, whose ideals inspired the Forward’s founders. These images help tell the story of the Forward newspaper itself, whose daily updates of local and international news helped shaped a way of life for Jewish immigrants for generations.

Public art represents and is represented with many different forms and ideas, its creation, concept and location all come into play when looking at a piece's place in an urban landscape such as New York City. Public art takes up a space, one that is always shared with a community, part of this story would like to address how the two intersect. In some cases a piece can even cultivate its own community, in the case of 5 Pointz, which in itself was its own piece of public art but also a space that created a community of artists. The Graffiti Mecca can also lead us to ask the question, “What is considered public art and where is the line drawn?” This question will be explored as well as looking to an ideal future for a city where public art is put at a higher priority and invested in. Where graffiti artists aren’t criminalized for their work or commodified for profit. Take a look at spaces and experiences where communities are represented and enhanced by public art, while considering the way public art can give back and engage all people in ways of expressing themselves.

In the 19th century, these shot towers soared above all other buildings. This particular tower, built in the year 1855 by James Bogardus, was over 175 feet tall with an octagonal base formed from 11 iron pillars. The height of the towers was necessary for the creation of the shot. Arsenic-laced melted iron would be brought up to the top of the towers and poured through a sieve. As it dropped, the molten iron would cool and form a circular shape before landing in a vessel of water. This would create a perfectly spherical lead shot. With some towers creating 15 tons of shot a day, the noise was cacophonous as the iron clattered down from the top.

If you were able to gaze at the skyline of New York in the 18th or 19th century, you might notice some strange towers sprouting up across the city. These towers existed to keep early New Yorkers locked and loaded and were essential in the creation of lead shot for ammunition.