The nYc wall of intention
A pop-up portrait + storytelling installation celebrating the intention, identity, and spirit of everyday New Yorkers.
How It Works
The NYC Wall of Intention pops up on street corners across Harlem, Bed-Stuy, and Lower Manhattan as an open-air invitation for anyone passing by. People step in, choose an intention that reflects what they’re carrying—clarity, rest, courage, reinvention—and write it on a card.
I photograph them holding that intention, and they add their word to the growing public installation: a living community wall filled with the hopes, emotions, and energy of everyday New Yorkers.
The entire experience takes two minutes, but it leaves people with a moment of pause, recognition, and pride—something rare in a city that moves fast.
Why It Matters
NYC moves fast, and too many of us—especially Black and brown New Yorkers—rarely get a moment to feel seen, centered, or celebrated. The Wall of Intention creates small pockets of pause in a city that rarely pauses for anyone.
Each portrait becomes a reminder that identity, intention, and humanity still matter here. Neighbors connect. Strangers share their word. People walk away with a moment of recognition and pride that follows them long after they leave the corner.
This project strengthens community by giving everyday New Yorkers something rare:
a moment of reflection, a moment of visibility, and a moment of joy.
What You’ll Experience
At each pop-up stop, New Yorkers can walk up, take a breath, and step into a simple open-air portrait studio. They choose a word—an intention—they’re carrying right now: clarity, courage, rest, reinvention, joy, purpose, anything.
I photograph them holding or wearing that intention, and they write a short reflection about what it means to them in this moment. Every portrait becomes part of a growing public installation: a living wall filled with the hopes, energy, and humanity of everyday New Yorkers.
No appointments. No pressure. No “modeling.”
Just real people, real stories, and a city seeing itself.
THE COMMUNITY INSTALLATION
All the portraits and handwritten intentions come together to form The NYC Wall of Intention — a growing public installation that reflects the spirit of the city through the people who live in it.
Each pop-up adds new faces, new words, and new stories. As the project travels across Harlem, Bed-Stuy, and Lower Manhattan, the wall expands—becoming a living, evolving snapshot of New York’s energy, identity, and collective imagination.
The installation will be shared in a public showcase and digital gallery so neighbors can see themselves—and each other—represented. It becomes a space where community pride, connection, and joy live side by side. A reminder that the city is built by the dreams and intentions of everyday New Yorkers.
Where You’ll Find Us
The NYC Wall of Intention will pop up in neighborhoods that reflect the heartbeat of the city — places where culture, community, and creativity are constantly in motion.
Planned locations include:
Harlem: for its legacy of Black artistry, activism, and community vision.
Bed-Stuy: where neighbors still pause, connect, and speak life into each other.
Lower Manhattan: where diverse stories cross paths every single minute.
Each stop becomes a moment of pause in the middle of the city, creating space for people to breathe, reflect, and be seen. No studio, no stage — just New Yorkers showing up as they are, exactly where they already are.
WHAT IS IT?
THE W
The NYC Wall of Intention is a traveling, open-air portrait studio and storytelling installation popping up across Harlem, Bed-Stuy, and Lower Manhattan. New Yorkers step in, choose a personal intention—like clarity, rest, courage, or reinvention—and are photographed holding or wearing that word.
Each portrait is paired with a handwritten reflection, turning every participant into part of a living, breathing snapshot of NYC’s spirit.
This project creates a joyful moment of pause in a fast city—an invitation to be seen, celebrated, and heard.