“Set in the Street” Turns Discarded NYC Furniture into Photo Sets

You know how it goes. You see discarded furniture on the sidewalk, you poke around, maybe you take something. We know some guy that put up another family’s ’70s era photo album on his bedroom wall. But what if all that discarded stuff was transformed into an interior set, but on the street? “Set in the Street” by photographer Justin Bettman and stylist Gozde Eker have done just that. They’re building elaborate sets out of unwanted furniture and other materials, photographing it and then leaving the sets up for people who walk by to enjoy. Using the hashtag #setinthestreet, it’s clear that people are just loving the random moment of serendipity.

The zoomed in/zoomed out photo series tells it all:

17th Street between 9th and 10th Avenue in Chelsea

On the Set in the Street website there’s even a map of locations, because it’s an ongoing art project. But the point is that these sets could be anywhere, transporting you for a moment out of the urban streetscape and into an incongruous scene. To add to the fun, fans have been adding their own pieces of decor to the sets.

White Street at Seigel Street in Bushwick.

As for scouting locations, they often use Google Street View or the old fashioned wandering, according to New York Magazine. The items are sprayed three times for bed bugs, stored away then taken by U-Haul early in the morning for a shoot.

White Street at Seigel Street, Bushwick

Rivington Street between Orchard and Ludlow

We’re excited for the next photographs in the series! Check out more quirky finds in our “Daily What?!” series. Also check out this beautiful series of photographs on NYC’s neon lights.