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		For well over a century, people from around the country and the world have flocked to New York in search of their dreams and a better reality. Many found a good life; many did not. New York is and continues to be a tale of two cities.


				Street Story Quilt (Three panels: The Accident, The Fire, and The Homecoming), 1985 Faith Ringgold (American, born 1930) Oil, felt-tipped pen, dyed fabric, and sequins sewn on canvas, sewn to quilted fabric; 90 x 144 in. (228.6 x 365.8 cm) overall The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York Purchase, Arthur Hoppock Hearn Fund and funds from various donors (1990.237a-c) Faith Ringgold © 1985


	Life in the tenements of New York is not easy, but there is a sense of community. For better or worse neighbors mix in the affairs of others as they look out for one another and each other's children. In Faith Ringgold's Street Story Quilt, the tenement is peopled—sometimes more, sometimes less, as the years unfold—with bright-eyed, curious neighbors, who are actively engaged with the goings-on of their neighborhood as they peer out of their windows. The tenement building—its facade appearing in each of the three panels that make up the work—serves as the backdrop and a witness to all of the events. The street is where the action begins. Enter > > >