Clayton Patterson raises the ghosts of the Lower East Side’s anarchic past
- Text by Alex King
- Photography by Clayton Patterson / Jason Wyche / Ai Weiwei
Artist Clayton Patterson forms a connection between today’s sanitised Lower East Side and its grittier, anarchic past when some of New York’s most iconic artists, such as The Velvet Underground, William S. Burroughs and Madonna, rubbed shoulders with junkies, gang members and corrupt cops.
When Clayton and his partner Elsa Rensaa arrived from western Canada 1979, they experienced a sensory overload and set about documenting the area’s unparalleled conflict and creativity.
Over the following decades, Clayton went on to not only document life on the LES, but actively contribute to it, building bridges to maintain and disseminate culture, highlighting the grassroots creativity overlooked by the art establishment through his gallery, and standing together with the community to protect the neighbourhood’s alternative – often misunderstood – way of life.
“I first met Clayton in 1988 during the Tompkins Square riot,” explains artist Ai Weiwei, whose shot of Clayton with ‘Dump Koch’ written on his hands for a court date was his first picture published in the New York Times. “His work is concerned with the truth, with facts. He has relentlessly devoted himself to a kind of culture that examines authority. He has devoted himself to recording what is really going on, to giving his true account.” A genuine outlaw artist, Clayton’s work is not for the consumption of the rich or the elite, but for people from the block who mainstream society often deems transgressive. “I really like his style,” continues Weiwei. “His style is like no-style. I should say it is antistyle.”
Clayton’s role as an activist, photographer, filmmaker, local historian and curator sometimes overshadow his prolific output as an artist, but his new retrospective Outside In at Howl Arts lets his work take centre stage – alongside paintings by his co-conspirator, Elsa.
Clayton Patterson: Outside In – featuring paintings by Elsa Rensaa is at Howl Arts, NYC, through August 14.
You might like
Palestine Action ban ruling set for Supreme Court appeal
Final stand — Founder Huda Ammori has won permission to challenge the Court of Appeal’s verdict, which upheld the group’s proscription as a ‘terror organisation’.
Written by: Ella Glossop
The art of paying attention: How Austria’s Alps reward slowing down
Lebensgefühl — With a growing movement of art and music rooted in the area’s mountains, trees and waterfalls, the region is showcasing the importance of the human relationship to nature.
Written by: Sophie Lou Wilson
Queer resistance & sun-soaked solidarity at the world’s largest trans pride march
Our Future, Our Fight — Over the weekend, over 150,000 people marched at the London Trans+ Pride, with the parade ending at Trafalgar Square for the first time in history.
Written by: Ella Glossop
Inside Parkuir: the art project queering sport, space and our bodies
Lie and play — Founded by Maria Laudes and Guiu Gimeno, it provides a framework for engaging, subverting, and celebrating the small details that make people unique – and queer.
Written by: Molly Lipson
London’s largest indoor skatepark to be demolished for padel courts
Better Extreme — The Barking skatepark’s fate follows that of similar indoor spaces in recent years, with operators GLL citing falling visitor numbers as the reason behind the decision.
Written by: Isaac Muk
Youthful joy & end-of-era poignancy at a London school prom
Leavers — For several years, Lewis Khan documented young people as they celebrated the last of their school days and the completion of their exams. The series is now collated in a new self-published photobook and short film.
Written by: Zoe Whitfield
