Wrapping up this week’s series is this set of photos from 2003 and 2004. As you can see, for some bizarre reason the NYC Parks Department wasted a lot of money and paint on priming the entire pool white, and then slapping another coat of deep red paint on the structure. It wasn’t long before people were tagging up here again though…
Aside from the epic graffiti find, the buildings of McCarren pool supplied a huge amount of decay porn. Sadly though nearly everything in these photos is also gone – victim of the rapidly progressing gut rebuild of the pool.
Basement under the arch
Old refrigerator in the ruined concessions stand in the back.
Basement hallway
Rusted pipes being hauled out.
The ancient coal fired boiler under the arch – this was used to provide hot water to the locker rooms. The muddy waterline shows how deeply it was submerged in rain water while the pool was abandoned.
Ancient sign.
Damaged electrical panel.
Even though the buildings at McCarren pool were sealed shut, the exterior walls became a whole new canvas for the next generation of graffiti writers. This is how the pool looked in 2001.
Deep below McCarren Pool, where only the most insane insomniac isotopic explorers dare wander, we came across still another batch of graffiti. These tags are much fewer than those of the locker room area, as these tunnels were likely pitch black in the 1980s when these guys hit this place.
This post is dedicated to the Ninja Team of the 80s. Deam, Mint, Finez, Gem, Ivette. If any of you are out there and want to relive your youth, give me a call!
Unknown to most, McCarren Pool contains a tunnel system. This tunnel system is a ring that starts under the main arch entrance and runs just under the edge of the pool in a large square. The rear side opens up to what was (and will be) the pool’s filtration room. Additionally there is a side tunnel that runs below the rim of what was once the diving pool (filled in and set to become a volleyball court).
Instead of hogging all the photo glory of having roamed through this place, I now turn this post over to the flavorful lens action of one Mr. ProZak, who accompanied me on this latest pool excursion.
Stay tuned for our next McCarren Xpose tomorrow, detailing the graffiti found in these tunnels.
When we first entered the former locker room areas of McCarren Pool, I was most pleased at this discovery. It is and was probably the most impressive graffiti discovery of 2010, period. While I know that is a huge, huge statement to make, you really must understand what we have here in these photos to truly appreciate the extent of the situation.
All of these photos were taken in 2010. All of the graffiti you see here (well, with one or two exceptions) was done inside the locker rooms of the pool during the 1980s. The date range of these tags runs from 1983 to approximately 1987. It is rather easy to conclude that during the years immediately after the pool was closed, the entire site was completely abandoned – doors left open, and vandals taking full advantage. At some point in the late 80s the buildings were sealed up with concrete and reinforced iron. From that point on, even while the exterior of the building became an illegal graffiti haven, no other graffiti artists gained access to the locker rooms.
This is most likely the last graffiti find of this variety in NYC to have survived until 2010. I can say this with a high regard of authority, having been in nearly every abandoned building within NYC over the last 20 years. The stock of abandoned buildings here was decimated during this time. Out of hundreds of such buildings the only intact walls of pure 1980s graffiti I ever found was the Graffiti Room in Greenpoint Terminal Market.
These photos represent a small portion of the dozens I took of this amazing graffiti find. Sadly, as of this last month, the locker rooms at McCarren Pool have been completely gutted. No trace remains of nearly all of this graffiti. These photos are the only proof it ever survived this long. I am of course, most pleased to be able to present them to you. Enjoy.
Stay tuned for tomorrows episode, where we go deep into the tunnels (!!!) and expose even more amazing finds.