New York at Night

New York, the city of all superlatives, energetic, electric, fascinating. The temptation is strong to be carried away by its frenetic pace, to run from right to left, to raise the eyes to the sky every two minutes in a continuous eagerness. I waited for several visits and traveled Manhattan up and down to question this endless race and want to look for another side of the city, more intimate, more human. I then began to walk around the city when she rested, when the night throws on her veil of mystery and unknown. During my nocturnal walks, I met many passers-by whose scars I could barely discern. Who were they? Where were they going? What were they doing here now? Imagining their story, the story of these destinies lost in the midst of these long avenues, these dizzying buildings and millions of other destinies that cross day by day, the answer was emerging little by little. I then realized that the more intimate face of New York I was looking for was in the relationship of these destinies with the city. At night time, when it’s more serene, more vulnerable and more humane at the same time.

All images © Nicolas Lepiller – 2018