Brooklyn is the greatest place ever! I lived in Fort Greene for four years while attending Pratt Institute and didn't realize how much I would miss it when I left for Chicago in August of 2008. The never-ending collection of street art in Brooklyn (as well as the other boroughs) was like a living, breathing art gallery.
The best thing about street art in NYC is it is always a surprise! You find it everywhere, in odd places, like over an old rusty doorway, along the walls of the A-train stairwell, or covering rusty storefronts on the Bowery.
I've noticed that most of the really interesting art is comprised of prints, photography, and mixed medium (wood, newsprint, paint, ink, etc.) instead of tags and bubble letters. Not that this kind of art isn't interesting (take the 7 train from LIC/Court Square towards Queens and you'll see an overabundance of graffiti adjourning the rooftops and old warehouses), but it's a different animal altogether, and seemingly a different lifestyle.
After living in Chicago for over a year and a half now I noticed the absence of solid street art, which in some ways is surprising. I have found some really good stuff here but not nearly as much or as interesting.
Not that you can't find street art in Chicago, it's there. It just seems like NYC has the finger on the pulse of individual expression an artistic freedom. With all the post-ups all over the city, especially in parts of Brooklyn (Dumbo has an extensive collection) it has created an iconography of what we've come to expect from the biggest and best city in the country.
If you ever plan a trip to New York City, keep your eyes open all the time, you never know what, when and where you light see something interesting. And take a picture!
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