The Wall of New York

Abstract

The urban history of New York City, its birth and decline, is linked with one basic element: water.  Water was the reason for its foundation and it could be the cause of its disappearance... Water is fundamental to the urban life of this city; it is the element that has fed its growth during its four hundred year existence. Only for this reason does it deserve the upmost attention and an exhaustive study. Water as a limit, wall or barrier, or as an extreme place of opportunity, it is without a doubt a place where the urban future of New York City rests. Although it deals with an uncertain and dystopian future if the forecast of the increase in ocean levels (as a consequence of climate change) holds true. The article is an abridgment of nine short texts and an epilogue, together with their respective ten graphic documents that make up the body of this research. As a result, the reader faces a graphic essay formed by small chapters that will guide them through the romance between New York and water, from its origins to the present day.