Photographers James and Karla Murray have made it their mission to preserve (in print, at least) the rapidly fading world of independent family-owned retail stores and shops throughout New York City. Seven years ago they published Store Front: The Disappearing Face of New York, a coffee table book that captured the aging facades of 325 of the city’s most notable street-level businesses. Since the Murrays published their first book seven years ago, two-thirds of the 325 businesses featured have closed. Typically, the reason involves the soaring rents that are commonplace amid the New York City’s prolonged real estate boom. (via: Subtraction.com


The Murrays have returned with a sequel, Store Front II, which documents another huge batch of these retail shops even as their extinction seems to be accelerating. They claim that even among this new batch, one-fifth have already been closed.

Observes graphic designer Khoi Vinh, “Like its predecessor, this follow-up is not only a visual document of each subject but also features highlights from interviews with store owners and workers. It’s a wonderful and unfortunately heartbreaking body of work.”


Here are some of the storefronts featured in Store Front II. (More information at Gingko Press or order a copy from Amazon.)

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(via: Subtraction.com)


Photos: Gingko Press

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