artists use found items to stage elaborate scenography on NYC streets

artists use found items to stage elaborate scenography on NYC streets
all images courtesy of justin bettman and gozde eker

on any given day, the streets of new york city are lined with a varied assortment of discarded domestic items, used books, plants, toys and tiles. for local photographer justin bettman and brooklyn-based prop stylist gozde eker, these seemingly random objects became a creative medium in the materialization of elaborate scenes, crafted entirely from unwanted materials they found abandoned on the sidewalks.

the residential landscapes they’ve visualized have been choreographed on street corners, avenues and alleyways, bringing interior routines outdoors, to the urban cityscape. ‘set in the street‘ is an ongoing art project and has since seen the realization of four settings in new york, and one in california. bedrooms, bathrooms and living rooms are built with wallpaper, tables, posters and assorted props, each which seek to tell the story of the family, couple or single inhabitants that are meant to reside in the spaces.

the couple reside in what seems to be a cozy domestic space filled with trinkets

upon each scene’s completion, bettman and eker left the props and furniture untouched, allowing passersby to create their own reality within the crafted setting and upload their visual responses to instagram using the hashtag #setinthestreet.

two children inhabit a seemingly suburban residential scene

props include paper, found furniture, plants and wall art

the interior landscape on the streets of california

the zoomed-in photograph is seemingly snapped in a family’s dining room

a child’s bedroom, built from found materials around new york city

striped wallpaper and a faux-grass expanse encapsulate the scene

a bathroom scene composed on the sidewalk

a close-up view reveals the multitude of props used in the creation of the bathroom scene