Eye On The City

NYC Salt 

NYC Salt is a non-profit program in New York City. Their mission is to engage, inspire, and empower youth from underserved, predominantly immigrant communities in New York City to reach their full potential and develop a sense of agency, belonging, and integrated identity through the lens of a camera.

The aim of this program is to create a family, a bridge and a launchpad for young artist as they develop creatively en professionally through a program taught by industry leaders. 

Hotel Arena will be presenting two artists with a collection of portraiture , a documentary project of the first couple dates of The Black Lives Matter Protests in NYC from 2020, published in the Time magazine and the New York Times magazine. 

In addition, you can also see a story about the community of a local basketball court in the South Bronx. The photographs offer a view of fashion, conflict and the community in New York City.

Malike Sidibe

“Please Stop the violence”

Malike Sidibe is a 25-year-old artist that creates work that is influenced by his African heritage. Major themes of his portraiture are movement and surreal visual shapes. 

A central goal of hist documentary “Please Stop The Violence” is to help different people demystify one anothers personhood trough visual language. He believes the resulting “Black Lives Matter” series of photos is his most important work to date. He hopes these images express the pain that is experienced when there is a lack of human connection and mutual understanding. We must do better.  

Daniel Martinez

“A Gated Community, Bronx, NY”

Daniel Martinez is Bronx born and bred. He is a 29-year old artist, inspired by his upbringing & Puerto Rican culture, he strives to create meaningful projects that document his thoughts, relationships & life experiences.

In the United States, a place that’s called a gated community is usually an expensive area, a specific group of homes with a security guard that keeps out strangers. Daniel wanted to play on those words and use them literally. His version of a gated community is the basketball courts where he has spent every summer since he was about twelve years old.

His project is a series of photos documenting this place. Here he has witnessed everything from barbecues to fights, to music videos being filmed, to kids enjoying summer. It is definitely a community he is proud to be part of.

“”I Want Justice, 2020, 2020,  Malike Sidibe: “Please Stop the Violence”

Tia, 2019,  Malike Sidibe

DMX, 2017, Daniel Martinez: A Gated Community, Bronx, NY