New York in the 1960s
During the ’60s, New York City remained a bustling nexus of culture and commerce. But sweeping social changes challenged traditional norms.
Protests boiled over, and sometimes violence broke out. The Harlem riot of 1964, for example, roped in 4,000 New Yorkers. Fashion trends shifted towards tie-dye and fringe, inspiring a movement that encouraged non-conformity. Psychedelic art flourished, appearing on posters promoting rock concerts and peace rallies.
Music
From the ad men of Madison Avenue to the artists of Greenwich Village, New York City was alive and well during the 1960s. The decade was marked by a counterculture movement challenging traditional norms and promoting creative freedom.
Trailblazing musicians influenced social change with powerful lyrics and innovative sounds. Bob Dylan’s anthem “Like a Rolling Stone” resonated with audiences while Jimi Hendrix revolutionized guitar playing techniques and pushed musical boundaries.
While some of NYC’s most prominent musicians sang about societal issues, others simply captured the energy and beauty of the city. From cabaret king Bobby Short to rap duo Soundview Houses, listen as these tracks invoke the sights, smells and sounds of NYC.
Politics
The 1960s were a time of turbulence and creativity, with significant social movements shaping the cultural landscape. From the civil rights movement to counterculture, New York City played a central role.
Soaring skyscrapers represented American enterprise, while neighborhoods like Greenwich Village were a vibrant melting pot. The era was also marked by a boom in technology, with breakthroughs in the space race and computer programming changing the way we communicate.
The crime rate in NYC increased throughout the decade as a result of heightened tensions and economic challenges, but the city’s resilience emerged. Civil rights activists took to the streets to fight for racial equality and protested the war in Vietnam, while early LGBT communities stood up against police oppression, launching modern gay rights activism.
Art
New York was the crucible for seismic shifts in music, art, and performance in the 1960s. These changes would transform the way we think about music, culture, and human sexuality.
From the street art of Julio 204 to the screams of a Happening by Claes Oldenburg, the city’s fugitive spaces sheltered experimental work that laid the foundation for today’s art world. Oldenburg and Jim Dine developed “Happenings” that used built environments to stage performances while artists like Simone Forti, Carolee Schneemann, and Jim Jarmusch explored a range of ideas through a variety of mediums.
Meanwhile, the gridded paintings of the Abstract Expressionist outliers gave way to Minimalism, which carved out a space for theoretical redefinitions of art’s social parameters. This work paved the way for modern art’s current era of performance, Conceptual art, and found objects.
Journalism
In this turbulent era, NYC is transformed into an architectural marvel and a hub for social movements that challenge traditional norms. From the Civil Rights Movement to an explosion of creative expression, NYC is a crucible of change.
New Journalism was founded on the premise that journalists could write real-life stories with the drama, excitement, and intricate structure of fiction. Truman Capote was a pioneer of this style, writing his nonfiction book In Cold Blood, about the murder of a family near Holcomb, Kansas in 1959.
Unlike traditional journalism with its reliance on factual reporting, this new genre of storytelling is tailored to a smaller, knowing audience and gives itself over to satire, hidden moral censure, and aestheticism. Some even equate it with poetry.
Sports & Entertainment
In the ’60s, NYC was a vibrant nexus of culture and commerce. The art world exploded into Pop Art and Minimalism, while music genres like folk, rock ‘n’ roll and jazz fusion merged to create a distinctive sound that still defines the city today.
Local newspapers informed the city’s citizens and shaped public opinion, while underground papers exposed political corruption and championed civil rights. Hippie fashion trends like tie-dye shirts, bell-bottom jeans and fringed vests reflected a desire to break free from conformity.
Madison Square Garden became a legendary venue for boxing matches and concerts, while Broadway experienced an explosion of creativity with productions that pushed boundaries and influenced the social movements of the day. Movies such as The French Connection, Midnight Cowboy and Saturday Night Fever evoke this era of larger-than-life happenings.