1994
Though the ’90s might not feel like that long ago, our city's neighborhoods are a world away from the gritty places they used to be, for better and for worse. French photographer Gregoire Alessandrini shot these images between 1991 and 1998, and his pictures show a time back when Brooklyn was just another forgotten borough, Soho was an up-and-coming area and the Lower East Side was cluttered with dives and a bohemian squatter population, (rather than luxury condos and wellness centers). Alessandrini describes NYC back then as a city "waking up with a bad hangover from all the past parties and eccentricity," following the wildness of the ’80s. If Alessandrini's amazing shots put you in the mood for all things plaid and scuffed, go ahead and compare New York now with the NYC of the '90s.
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