For my photo essay and book I decided to address the idea that in the city we barely look up. How often do we take our eyes off the ground? We rush through life barely looking at the city around us, let alone the sky. If we take just a moment, a break, and look above the streets, buildings, and concrete we will find that the first thing we do is…BREATHE. 
In order to convey this message I made the cover of my book cutouts of the New York City skyline. To bind the book I used fabric and metal fasteners to stick with the theme of buildings and the city.
In the center I made an accordion fold with photos (on each side) starting with the street, then items you would find on the street, then fronts of buildings, then tops of structures, then bridges and finally an ambigram in the middle saying “breathe” both ways. I added color into the photos in areas where the sky was visible. I wanted to give my viewer the experience of starting with looking down at the ground and slowly moving towards the moment where the sky takes their breath away.
I hope the next time you are walking through the streets of New York you take a moment, look up, and “Breathe.”
-Teige Alexandra
