![Alvin Baltrop was a queer photographer born in the Bronx in 1948. From 1975 to 1986 he photographed the crumbling piers and their inhabitants on the west side of Manhattan.
“Although initially terrified of the piers, I began to take these photos as a voyeur [and] soon grew determined to preserve the frightening, mad, unbelievable, violent, and beautiful things that were going on at that time. To get certain shots, I hung from the ceilings of several warehouses utilizing a makeshift harness, watching and waiting for hours to record the lives that these people led (friends, acquaintances, and strangers), and the unfortunate ends that they sometimes met. The casual sex and nonchalant narcotizing, the creation of artwork and music, sunbathing, dancing, merrymaking, and the like habitually gave way to muggings, callous yet detached violence, rape, suicide, and, in some instances, murder. The rapid emergence and expansion of AIDS in the 1980s further reduced the number of people going to and living at the piers, and the sporadic joys that could be found there.” -Baltrop
Baltrop was never properly recognized for his talents during his life and passed away in 2004. He was featured in ARTFORUM magazine in February 2008.
Respect your Elders, B.](http://www.tumblr.com/photo/1280/thegang/125504902/1/ouNJQHywhou9vgx54QHy1xYy)
Alvin Baltrop was a queer photographer born in the Bronx in 1948. From 1975 to 1986 he photographed the crumbling piers and their inhabitants on the west side of Manhattan.
“Although initially terrified of the piers, I began to take these photos as a voyeur [and] soon grew determined to preserve the frightening, mad, unbelievable, violent, and beautiful things that were going on at that time. To get certain shots, I hung from the ceilings of several warehouses utilizing a makeshift harness, watching and waiting for hours to record the lives that these people led (friends, acquaintances, and strangers), and the unfortunate ends that they sometimes met. The casual sex and nonchalant narcotizing, the creation of artwork and music, sunbathing, dancing, merrymaking, and the like habitually gave way to muggings, callous yet detached violence, rape, suicide, and, in some instances, murder. The rapid emergence and expansion of AIDS in the 1980s further reduced the number of people going to and living at the piers, and the sporadic joys that could be found there.” -Baltrop
Baltrop was never properly recognized for his talents during his life and passed away in 2004. He was featured in ARTFORUM magazine in February 2008.
Respect your Elders, B.
