By Phoebe Neidl
Brooklyn Daily Eagle

BROOKLYN — To paraphrase Brooklyn author Colson Whitehead, you know you’re a New Yorker when you can walk down one of the city’s well-worn streets, point to a building and say, “Hey, that used to be …�

So it should only take newcomers a few weeks to become true denizens of the city, because as photographers Karla and James Murray noticed, stores open and close around here at a fantastic rate. It is this phenomenon that is the inspiration behind the Murrays’ new exhibit at the Brooklyn Historical Society, Counter/Culture — The Disappearing Faces of Brooklyn Storefronts.

A married couple, both commercial photographers, the Murrays have spent the past 10 years documenting mom-and-pop storefronts throughout the five boroughs. Their hundreds of photos will be published in November in a book titled “Storefront — The Disappearing Face of New York,� but for now, 40 of the photos taken in Brooklyn are on display in BHS’s Independence Community Gallery as part of the Public Perspectives Exhibition Series.

“We started documenting graffiti art in the mid-’90s,� explained Karla. “We were interested in how temporary it was and that it was always changing. So we would travel to these far-flung neighborhoods of the city, and then return a few weeks or a month later, and we would realize that the neighborhood would look different. Not just the graffiti, but the stores. In such a short period of time, it would change. Stores closed.�

Wanted To Remain ‘Old School’

The Murrays’ photos include panoramic images of city blocks as well as images of single storefronts. Using film, rather than the digital format, because they wanted to remain “old school� like the stores they were documenting, the Murrays traversed the city seeking out those unique little shops that are the true New York City landmarks for so many neighborhood-loyal residents.

In their curatorial statement, they write that they hope “to bring awareness to the importance of maintaining the character and community of neighborhoods in the face of development.�

The Murrays took their documentation a step further by interviewing the storeowners. Proprietors of such places as Emily’s Pork Store, Zig Zag Records, Tony’s Luncheonette and the Rainbow Cafe happily discussed the history of their businesses.

“It was compelling. The owners were so open. They finally felt like someone was listening to them,� said Karla at the exhibit’s opening on Wednesday night.

Accompanying most of the photos in the exhibit is a lengthy quote from each owner. Many of the stores, in business for generations, have closed since the Murrays recorded them. “A purveying theme was that when the owners actually owned the building, they were able to stay in business,� said Karla.

Katy’s Candy Store in Bedford-Stuyvesant —“one of the last penny candy stores in the city� — closed in 2007 after 40 years in business. In a familiar storyline, the building was sold, and rent was drastically increased. “I sell penny candy. I can’t afford to pay $2,350 a month,� owner Catherine Keyzer told the Murrays in 2004.

Several of the interviews were recorded on video and play on a flat-screen TV as part of the exhibit. Among these is an interview with Jimmy Leary of Jimmy Stationery and Toys, still in operation.

According to Leary, his shop was “the birthplace of the Teddy Bear.� The granddaughter of the original owner told him her grandmother sewed together a stuffed bear after seeing a cartoon about President Teddy Roosevelt, who once famously refused to shoot a bear cub. She wrote to President Roosevelt to ask if she could call it a “Teddy Bear,� and the rest is history.

“Going to the counter in these stores was like being welcomed to their tables,� said James Murray, explaining why the exhibit is titled Counter/Culture.

“Now, store counters are usually made chest-high and covered in Plexiglas for safety,� he noted.

Counter/Culture — The Disappearing Faces of Brooklyn Storefronts will be on display until Dec. 28. You can download a podcast of James and Karla talking about the project at www.brooklynhistory.org. The Brooklyn Historical Society is at 128 Pierrepont St. in Brooklyn Heights and is open Wednesday through Sunday.

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