I was really stunned at the colors on this man’s patchwork clothing. I spoke with him and learned that he was from Senegal – there are many Senegalese street vendors in the city.
There is a group of Mouride warriors known as the Baye Fall who roam the hot and dusty interior of Senegal “singing, proselytizing, and begging.” They dress in patchwork clothing and wear dreads. I don’t know if this man had some connection to this group or whether the dress is derivative in some way. A little investigation, I’m sure, would answer that question…
New York city is large enough and diverse enough to allow all manner of the unusual. Ethnic groups with traditional dress or body art can be comfortable here – their appearance will not draw much attention in a city of sensory overload, a continuous impact of colors, sights, and sounds. If you have read this blog, you know I frequently have stated that many things get overlooked, like the dessert truck in my neighborhood (see here), and then there are the eccentrics, the extreme, the fringe, and the flamboyant. This is one of the few places where they could survive and be happy. I have done a number of postings on a spectrum of colorful characters, many of whom are personal favorites of mine and readers of this site. See the links below for more of the flamboyant…
Related Postings: Spike, Fashion Forward, Out There, Narcissism Gone Wild
Brilliant pattern to his traditional dress and … ah the description of the desserts sold at the dessert truck were mouth watering. Thanks for pointing out to it, I had missed it yesterday.
I am constantly amazed at the colorful clothing of other cultures. We Americans by contrast are pretty drab, as a whole. Certainly there are exceptions, but on the whole our clothing is pretty homogeneous. Nice post!
And I remember the “Mohawk” haircut was enough to consider dismissal from a school system. Times have changed.
I like your photos, Brian! Really excellent!
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