In Berenice Abbott’s photographs of 1930s New York City, the signage of the bustling city often overwhelms the building facades. Signs—especially illuminated ones, ringed in neon or dotted with individual bulbs—are an important part of the cultural expression that is essential to why facades are endlessly interesting subjects for architects. But these items are often tossed in the trash when they decay from decades of wear, enterprises go out of business, tenants make improvements, or technology changes.
Now, Noble Signs, a shop near Broadway Junction in Brooklyn, has taken up the cause to preserve these fascinating graphics. It, along with artists, archivists, and signage professionals, have created the New York Sign Museum, a nonprofit foundation dedicated to preserving and promoting the history of advertising and signage in New York City and the surrounding areas. The effort, housed in a space adjacent to Noble Signs, uninstalls pieces at no cost or offers repairs. The salvaged signs are stored together in a growing collection that is fascinating to explore. (Interested parties can sign up for a scheduled tour or arrange an appointment via email. Visit nysignmuseum.org for details.)
Christopher Payne’s photos of the interior showcase the pileup of graphics, along with the signage professionals who restore these pieces of New York’s graphic history.
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