This photo essay by Jahtiek Long captures a night where Staten Island’s underground art scene came alive in celebration of Día de los Muertos and Halloween. Blending drag, aerial artistry, Sword dancing, and DJ sets, the event Días de los Muertos vs. Halloween transformed 4 Willow into a space of vibrant expression, honoring both tradition and individuality. Curated by Nazz Raidence and Forest the Monarch, the night stood as a reminder of how Staten Island continues to carve out its own spaces for art, performance, and community connection.

Local sculptor and performance artist DB Lampman takes us on a site-responsive journey that explores the movements and inner lives of beach birds.

Can you taste it? Is that steaming hot cup of java simmering and wafting? You think to yourself, What ingredients does it possess and was it made lovingly? Who is pouring it? What’s the intention? Like any sought-after food and drink recipe, ingredients are key. And just like that, a place you visit with real investment in its community also possesses these ingredients. If you were around in the early 2000s, chances are you could look no further than the Muddy Cup Coffeehouse, which was located at 388 Van Duzer Street in Staten Island’s Stapleton district during the height of the early aughts.

A shouting mandolin player stomps their feet for a twelve-minute song. A petite instrumentalist disappears behind an accordion for an impressive droning set. A singer brings the expected roar of a bar down to intrigued whispers as they sing. A six-foot rapper brings a ukelele out from behind their back. A comedian tackles a tipsy mass and ensures a strong reaction. A magician rises from the mixing console to reintroduce wonder to otherwise arduous lives.