Although in fact the Gates were conceived of long ago, this is the year they finally blossomed after a long period of dormancy. And the brilliance is in no way diminished by the wait or by the short duration of their visit.

Some have trouble calling this kind of thing art. After some thought, I think it art of the highest sort - almost a Meta-Art, useful as a form of enriching soil for the mind to grow further. It connected people that did not know one-another, connected New Yorkers to everyone else, and gave a large number of people a fantastic shared experience that may serve to kindle creativity in who knows how many minds.

Furthermore it is a fine form of practical art. Having to pay for it all themselves achieves a breathtaking purity, for they literally put their money where the mind is and produce only what they themselves find interesting. Without other sponsors to answer to, you know that what you see is as close to another humans grand vision for life as you are likely to.

Feel free to download these images for personal use, for any commercial use please contact me first.

If anyone would like to order prints, you can also find all of these pictures at my SmugMug gallery:

http://kigiphoto.smugmug.com/NYC+Gates