Group Members: Ryan Huang, Alexia Garrett

Our project was inspired by Peter Kuper’s exhibition at the Society of Illustrators. We examined and analyzed how his layered visual storytelling is a direct reflection on the everyday realities of New Yorkers. What made his work especially interesting was how he transformed everyday spaces, like a simple bodega, into a creative expression that exposes the unseen social, cultural and psychological dynamics of New York life. The panel we focused on displays a crowded cockroach ecosystem beneath the city, reflecting New York’s  crowded streets and the struggle of surviving a cluttered, dense, urban environment. The tiny creatures become a symbol of the unnoticed yet prominent challenges for people in the city. Reflecting on that illustration, we thought back on our own role as students. College often feels like the “surface world,” where people make assumptions about you, judge you academically, or see you only for your achievements. But beneath the image of you that others see, there’s a hidden ecosystem of responsibilities and invisible battles that almost every student experiences. In comparison, the cockroaches navigating the bodega’s underground maze reflect our own paths of survival, balancing self-doubt and growth. Moreover, most panels in Kuper’s collection require lots of attention to detail. Just as the panel demonstrates how careful observation can reveal hidden cultural dynamics, entering college as a freshman requires observing, understanding and engaging with a complex environment too. By focusing on interactions and creating routines, we begin to understand how to navigate, adapt and feel like we belong to this community. Kuper’s illustrations require attention to detail the same way we need curiosity to appreciate a new college setting.

How did completing your project help you explore the role of arts in the lives of New Yorkers and their communities?Completing our project helped us understand that art in New York City is not just an aesthetic experience but instead, a way for people to preserve the stories of its communities. Not only that, art allows people to reflect on their own lives while still relating to the experiences of others. Art is a very overlooked but notable part of New York City, whether it’s through illustrations like Kuper’s or performances, art is able to capture universal emotions, spoken to many people with many interpretations. In a city that’s as large and fast paced as New York, or a big college where students feel small and overwhelmed, pieces that are specific to certain environments can help individuals feel seen and connected. Through exploring Kuper’s work particularly, though the scenes were more specific to New Yorkers, it still conveyed a sense of a community which binds different people together. For college students like us, this perspective is significant because it shows that even in a large, complex environment, paying attention to minor struggles makes us feel seen. After completing this project, we gained a deeper appreciation for how art celebrates even the smallest voices and experiences that still contribute to the larger stories of the city. We realized that especially in today’s world, art’s role is crucial in cultivating empathy, awareness, and an overall strengthened sense of shared humanity.