But in the ’70s, the Hudson Piers that run along its coast were an unofficial creative space and erotic playground where artists took over and transformed the large city-owned decaying buildings that had once been part of an active port.
“To wander among the pier ruins meant both to be aware of the past of a great maritime city and to sense an apocalyptic future,” wrote Jonathan Weinberg, art historian at Yale University and author of the book “Pier Groups” — a title he borrowed from a 1979 porn film by director Arch Brown that was shot on the Manhattan waterfront.
In doing so, they reclaimed disused buildings from their derelict fate, turning empty piers into community spaces teeming with creativity.
“Everybody who talks about (the piers) has this very personal relationship to them and felt like it was their place, that nobody else knew about it,” Weinberg said in a phone interview.
The late ’70s were a grim period for New York City, which was in crisis and on the verge of bankruptcy.
