Gut Renovation (2012)

In 1989 together with a group of female friends Su Friedrich rented and renovated an old loft in Williamsburg an unassuming workingclass district of Brooklyn In 2005 this former industrial zone was designated a residential area and the factories manufacturers and artistslofts were priced out by property speculators lured by tax breaks Friedrich spent five years documenting with her camera the changes in the area She shows the demolition of industrial buildings and the construction of trendy new apartments for wealthy clients watching old tenants leave and new inhabitants arrive As she keeps meticulous record of developments the extent and speed of the upheaval becomes clear Her own tenancy agreement expires too and so her documentary images and trenchant commentary become the tools of her growing anger A documentary of small changes evolves into an historical record of New York a case study of the rapid gentrification of our cities