East Village Mosaic Trail
Ever wonder how the iconic mosaic street poles in the East Village originated?
They were created by artist and veteran Jim Power AKA Mosaic Man over the past three decades, With his first polls dating back to 1985. The mosaic polls honor the neighborhood's history and culture, memorializing lost institutions like the Filmore East and the bands that played there from Jimi Hendrix to Pink Floyd; the Museum of the American Gangster and East Village mobster Lucky Luciano; 9/11 first responders; and the 2003 blackout.
Power says he created nearly seventy poles of the past 35 years, many of which were removed during the Giuliani administration. Mayor Bloomberg later praised the Power's work for "beautifying the city with distinctful, artful mosaics."
After the city removed many of the poles in Astor Place during reconstruction, a backlash from community groups led to the Department of Transportation bringing the artist in to restore the polls, which have now been returned to their original locations.
A Go Fund Me page was created in 2017 to support Power's restoration of the Mosaic Trail, which follows E. 8th – St Marks Place between Broadway and Tompkins Square Park. To donate, you can find a link to the Go Fund Me here.
