Making marks and taking notes

I suspect this old van, which I photographed in NYC way back in the day, was actually owned by an artist or a group of artists, and they chose to cover its rotten paint job with graffiti. If you look closely, you'll see that it comes with instructions, "CONSIDER THIS ART". Very helpful, although by now, the issue is probably settled for most of us. 

I am happy to have captured this record of the early days of street art on film -- it was an exciting time. Some have even called it utopian. As I drink my tea and allow my mind to wander, I find myself contemplating whether images of public art can be considered works of art in their own right.

Here is a more intentionally composed image featuring different kinds of marks on concrete. Some look like mold, while others suggest the possibility of a higher intelligence at work! 

This image was captured on the Leica R8 using the 24 mm f/2.8 lens. This is one of the lenses I bought when I was getting into the R-system. It was produced in collaboration with Minolta, and I guess that makes it less collectible. It was not very expensive but still makes fine images (with some vignetting as you can plainly see).

Perhaps this is how artists will communicate with each other if history takes a more dystopian turn. Or perhaps we'll go back to carrier pigeons.