I love déjà vu. The accents dance on the letters, and for a brief moment I am taken somewhere else.
The weather today is exactly like it was when I was in New York last June. I just emerged from an air-conditioned office into the warm afternoon light, there it was. Déjà vu all over again.
Instantly it all came flooding back. Sticky vinyl cab seats. Wall Street at noon on a weekday. Cans of Bud on the rooftop with my man. Near-naked hordes picnicing in Central Park on a Sunday afternoon. The buzz of helicopters overhead…
And then I remembered Jeff Liao’s sublime images of Queens – the real New York; a whole nother side of this fascinating city that I’ve never had the pleasure to explore. That’s the thing about Liao’s work, it gives you that feeling of déjà vu even if you haven’t actually been there before. That subtle feeling of familiarity, yet not knowing why. And I love it.
