The Germania Bank Building was built in 1898, when the Bowery was middle class and German. To the casual passer-by, it appears to be abandoned. However photographer Jay Maisel purchased the entire building 42 years ago for $102,000 – and has lived in what New York Magazine calls “A 72-Room Bohemian Dream House” ever since. Six stories and 35,000 square feet of living space hosts Maisel, his wife, daughter, studio, and galleries. And there’s even a working elevator, the original 1898 copper cage. In 2005, Maisel’s home achieved New York City Landmark Status. The Bowery is being gentrified and the city wants the exterior to be graffiti free, but the building remains a mecca for street artists. Maisel has given up scrubbing his walls. While preserving part of New York’s 19th century history, he provides contemporary folk artists a canvas for expression. For this image of Maisel’s home, I use a wideangle lens to embrace as much graffiti as I can, and layer it with a lonely bicycle.