Jeff Mermelstein. Image from #nyc (MACK, 2020). Courtesy of the artist and MACK.
We’ve all been there. The irate thudding of thumbs against the screen as an ALL CAPS message is fired off. The audacious sigh released after hitting send on that risky text. The flushed ear-to-ear grin that stretches involuntarily when an “I love you” message pops up from your special someone. All of these moments are emblematic of the evolution of human communication – one where our communication is now principally digital.
As our communication has shifted to digital platforms so has the language, mannerisms and behaviour used. This updated cyber-vernacular piqued the interest of New York City-based photojournalist Jeff Mermlestein who has been documenting the streets of the ‘Big Apple’ since he moved from from New Brunswick, NJ in 1987.
Jeff Mermelstein. Image from #nyc (MACK, 2020). Courtesy of the artist and MACK.
In 2017, Mermlestein snapped a photo of a woman seated at a cafe on his iPhone. The woman can be seen composing a text message. Mermlestein zoomed in and was able to peek into her conversation. Amidst the back and forth of messages, a story emerged – $6,000 had been discovered in an attic! He uploaded the photo onto Instagram with the brief but but mildly profound caption: #nyc. Over the next three years, he uploaded hundreds of New Yorkers’ overseen texts with that same caption.
The caption would serve as inspiration for the title of a 160-page photobook which harvested the most hilarious, bizarre, mundane and risqué of those text interactions. The conversations, though inelegant, felt like a more transparent window into the thoughts and feelings of New Yorkers.
Jeff Mermelstein. Image from #nyc (MACK, 2020). Courtesy of the artist and MACK.
#nyc is a testament to the belief that humans operate with greater confidence behind a screen. The lack of face-to-face contact often elicited more candid responses in text form. Many texters appeared to have been emboldened by the less direct threat of shame for expressing how they felt. Readers will find themselves wading through some saucy sexts leaving a decidedly voyeuristic impression. In an interview Mermlestein marvelled at how “some of the most bombastic ones, […] were from a person that looked ‘normal’.”
Beyond the bold responses, some conversations displayed incredible compassion and attested to mankind’s caring nature towards the vulnerable. One text to a person suffering from chemotherapy treatments wilfully stated “IF I COULD I WOULD DO ANYTHING TO SAVE YOU. I AM SO SAD AND FEELING HELPLESS. I CANT EVEN IMAGINE WHATS GOING ON INSIDE YOU. I HAVE ALWAYS BELIEVED IN MIRACLE. I PRAY TO GOD THAT A MIRACLE.”
In tough moments, it can be a struggle finding the right words for the occasion. Mermlestein’s shots suggest that having the luxury of time that texting affords us to respond to things can help us find the right things to say.
#nyc by Jeff Mermlestein is now available from MACK Books.