Conversations on the Hudson was a project that took Nick from New York City along the Hudson River, stopping to talk to artists and craftspeople along the way.
At the start of 2012 Nick's wife, Harriet, went to work in New York City for six months, which gave him the perfect opportunity to indulge in his very favourite pastime, a long bicycle ride, and one that gave him the chance to seek out interesting folk. Nick recorded and photographed the people he met along the route and made a series of photofilms. The stories were also collected together in a book in collaboration with Sara Bader and published by Princeton Architectural Press.
500 miles
3 weeks
20 conversations
Nick arrived in New York City with his Argos bicycle and started the ride from his temporary front door in Brooklyn, crossing the East River and Manhattan Island to set out north along the mighty Hudson River toward Hudson Falls. At the start of the journey he detoured in Manhattan to pay tribute to Joe Strummer, at his memorial mural on Seventh Street and Avenue A. Joe, who died in 2002, was best known as the singer in the Clash, and at one point had called himself “Woody,” after Woody Guthrie. Later on in the journey, Nick met Anna Canoni, Woody Guthrie’s granddaughter. He also saw Pete Seeger at a Clearwater tribute to Woody. Clearwater is a project set up by Seeger in 1966 to save his beloved Hudson River from the effects of decades of industrial pollution. Seeger is a legendary folk singer and activist, and has dedicated much of his long life to the Clearwater project. In 1969 he launched the sloop Clearwater, considered by many as America’s environmental flagship.
The journey took Nick up the Hudson valley on a five hundred-mile journey using the guidance of Ken Roberts and his excellent Bike Hudson Valley website.
Map illustrated by Jon McNaught and Harriet Hand.
