Fading away on brick buildings throughout Queens, ‘ghost signs’ advertise the businesses and product BY NICHOLAS HIRSHON
Fading away on brick buildings throughout Queens, “ghost signs” advertise the businesses and products of yesteryear – a form of commercial art that preserves history with a vintage touch.
But the unique signs, some of which date to the 1930s, often go unnoticed by locals and tourists because the borough does not promote its own old-fashioned flair.
“They help paint the landscape you live in,” said Frank Jump, a Queens-bred blogger who photographs ghost signs. “We’re urban-dwellers. There’s not a lot of beauty in cities. It brings you back.”
To call attention to the classic ads, Jump is pushing Borough Hall to create a trail linking them with brochures or podcasts.
Jeanne Noonan for NY Daily News taking the shots for this article © Frank H. Jump
Read more:
- NY Daily News – Tuesday, August 24, 2010
- PHOTO GALLERY – NY Daily News
- Advocates of ghost sign trail in Queens garnering kudos from experts; BY NICHOLAS HIRSHON – Tuesday, August 24th 2010, 4:00 AM
- If these walls could talk: Photographer preserves fading glory of the city’s painted building ads BY JIM MELANSON – Saturday, December 16th 2000, 2:15AM
