Also, be sure to head over to 66 Square Feet, where Marie Viljoen posted a lovely feature about the fest, and make sure to check out some awesome photos from festivals past on the Brooklyn Historical Society’s blog!

“Brooklyn.” by Barry Yanowitz:

“Sardines,” by xymox:

“Atlantic Antic is Loud,” by Chris Arnade:

“Atlantic Antic Beer,” and “Sonia Walton,” by Marie Viljoen:

Untitled, by Barry Yanowitz:

I had been so wrapped up in thinking about where to go, that I forgot about the beauty of the scene sitting right in front of me. I grabbed the film camera, adjusted the settings, and took a shot.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

But what I do not question is the wonderful community that we have started to build here at For the Love of Brooklyn. The photographers I’ve met, the passionate folks I’ve spoken with, the artistic borough that supports and kindles our passions — all of this is wildly inspiring. And to that end, I’m really excited to announce that we are beginning an ongoing series of photo meet-ups in Brooklyn!

If you’d like to participate, please be in touch either via Flickr or via the Contact page here on the blog — we’ll send you details, and the first meetup begins later this week! Stay tuned for more details…!

This weekend marked the seventh annual Open House New York celebration, which grants public access to many architecturally-significant and culturally interesting landmarks in the NYC area not otherwise open often (or ever, in some cases). The program this year featured loads of really exciting tours, many of which sold out in advance.

I opted to try and grab tickets for the Atlantic Avenue Tunnel tour, and to my good fortune, I was able to reserve two spots before it sold out. The tour takes you down below the street level into the world’s oldest subway tunnel, which was lost for decades until a man named Bob Diamond rediscovered its location in 1980. After excavating the tunnel and trying (without success) to petition the city government to put it to good re-use, Diamond founded an organization to lead tours, preserve its history, and promote the tunnel as a fascinating historical landmark in New York city history. Check out his organization’s website (and full history of the tunnel) here.

I can heartily recommend the tour, which they give monthly, and with plenty of excitement, I brought my tripod and a flashlight. Check out my Open House photos and captions below!

Two volunteers from the Open House New York staff and BHRA set up traffic barriers and remove the manhole in the intersection of Atlantic Avenue and Court Street in Brooklyn.

The tour guide led groups of us down into the tunnel via the manhole in the middle of the street. That felt pretty awesome, as the cars were zooming by. Strangely, you couldn't really hear much street noise at all.

After coming down through the manhole, we entered the antechamber. This is where Bob Diamond crawled through and made his discovery.

This shot is from near the end of the tunnel, not 200 yards from the Hudson River and New York Bay. There is a giant stone wall at the end of the tunnel, in which they believe that an old steam engine is buried. Let's hope that the city and powers that be grant them money to excavate and find out!!

It was a shame no one was watching the sunset from these benches. They were the perfect spot this night, amidst the flowers, overlooking the Hudson. This park is located in Cobble Hill on Hicks Street between Amity and Pacific, just above the buzzing BQE. It’s surprisingly quiet and a lovely spot to spend an hour or so reading in the afternoon light. …Or a good place to take a sanity break from the Long Island College Hospital emergency room, located across the street!

According to the NYC Parks Department, this park strip belongs to Van Voorhees park, which is predominantly on the west side of the BQE. Named for Tracy S. Voorhees (1890-1974), “an attorney and decorated World War II veteran” who eventually served as the President of LICH next door, this park celebrates the Van Voorhees family’s history in New York, which is definitely worth the read:

The Van Voorhees family traces its lineage to Steven Coerten Van Voorhees who settled in Brooklyn in the mid-17th century. He established himself in the neighborhood of Flatlands, became a magistrate, an elder in the Dutch Reformed Church, and the head of a formidable clan. His ten children bore 20 grandchildren. The grandchildren amassed 85 children themselves, among them Tracy Voorhees, to carry on the family name. The “Van” was eventually dropped from the name.

[ed. update] Thanks also to Brownstoner for featuring the shot!