Meryl Meisler's 'New York Paradise Lost' Depicts a Sexy, Lost Gotham

"The mind is its own place and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven." --John Milton, Paradise Lost.

Meryl Meisler's scintillating new book, New York PARADISE LOST Bushwick Era Disco, is an intimate journey to the pandemonium and paradise of New York City in the 1970s to early 1990s. Meryl documented a tumultuous time in NYC's history - epidemics of arson, crime, crack, and AIDS, intensified by a paralyzing blackout, political and fiscal crisis. Frequenting Manhattan's legendary discos that arose amongst disorder, she captured hedonistic havens, celebrities, and revelers of the night. In contrast, daylight revealed the beauty of those who loved and thrived in burnt-out Bushwick, where she was a public school art teacher who photographed what she saw. Her effervescent images are personal memoir - love letters filled with compassion and humor mixed with angst, kept secret for decades until she retired from teaching.

Image: New York PARADISE LOST Bushwick Era Disco Book Cover
"PUSSY and Dick", Bushwick, Brooklyn NY 1982

Information about Exhibits:
ClampArt, 247 West 29th St., NY, NY
June 3 - July 9, 2021
Opening Reception & Book Signing, Sat. June 5, 2 - 7 p.m.

Center for Photography at Woodstock, 59 Tinker St., Woodstock, NY
July 03 - August 15, 2021
Book Signing, Sat. July 3 & Sun. July 4, 12 - 2 p.m.

Book available at Strand Books.

Bushwick Snowstorm, 1982

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Grace Jones in Hallway with JudiJupiter and Others on Opening Night

Farfalle, NY, NY 1978

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Silver Boots Stretched on Floor

Studio 54, NY, NY 1977

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Family Picnic

Bushwick, Brooklyn, NY 1982

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Cafeteria Finger Gesture

IS 291, Bushwick, Brooklyn, NY 1990

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Magnolia Tree

Bushwick, Brooklyn, NY 1983

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Four on Deck at Star Wars Party

Fire Island Pines, NY 1977

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Women Embrace on Floor Near JudiJupiter’s Legs

Les Mouches, NY, NY 1978

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Nose Ring, Earring, Mustache and Hickey

IS 291, Bushwick, Brooklyn NY 1991

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Andy Warhol Smiling with Eyes Closed (Between his friend and JudiJupiter)

Studio 54, NY, NY 1977

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Three Menudo Fans

IS 291, Bushwick, Brooklyn, NY 1983

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Five Fashionable Rejects (With JudiJupiter)

Studio 54, NY, NY 1978

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Guardian Angel

IS 291, Bushwick, Brooklyn, NY 1983

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Two Queens at the COYOTE Hookers Masquerade Ball

Copacabana, NY, NY 1977

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt

Patou and The Man in The Moon With a Cocaine Spoon

Studio 54, NY, NY 1978

Photo: (c)Meryl Meisler courtesy of ClampArt