I hate Bobst...just kidding.

The Elmer Holmes Bobst Library has gained a reputation throughout its years of calling Washington Square Park home. Many know if it for its architecture, the views it offers, and its Plexiglas barricaded staircases. I personally used to hate Bobst. After all the disheartening tragedies that have taken place there as well as the too quiet, even for a library, atmosphere, I’ve stayed far, far away from Elmer Holmes.

Last Thursday, I went with my Downtown Reporting class to visit the Fales Library and Special Collections. It’s a collection within Bobst, located on the 3rd floor, which includes The Fales Collection, the Downtown Collection, the Food and Cookery Collection and the General Special Collections, just to name a few. In what I thought was going be another showy representation of NYU’s vast wealth and acquisitions, turned into a different kind of experience of Greenwich Village past.

It became clear from the very beginning of the field trip that the avant-garde flavored life of downtown Manhattan was going to be presented in an unrestricted way.

Marvin Taylor was our guide and he Director of the Fales Library. He was able to infuse the appreciation he holds for downtown Manhattan, by throwing in facts, jokes and general good time energy. Taylor explains his profession as having a “dissolute childhood and making a career of it.”

In terms of the exhibits, Taylor presented us with some influential cultural artifacts that Greenwich Village has to offer. Videos from the Judson Memorial Church pay on loop, showcasing Meat Joy and People’s Flag Show. They were two dances that caused a stir for their provocative messages and straight up law breaking antics. The footage of Meat Joy presents men and women on stage lathering themselves with dead fish and chickens. It was one of those can’t-help-but-watch situations. You know you shouldn’t be seeing this but it’s too interesting not to stare. People’s Flag Show is a dance performed by men and women only clothed in American flags which, when the press found out, caused an uproar. “It turned into anything goes,” says Taylor of the Church, who describes the dances as simply "brilliant.” Carolee Schneemann, who choreographed Meat Joy, can be heard on loop too describing the dance. I'm not going to lie, it’s kind of eerie. Along with all of this there are songs, letters and flags on display too that were housed in the Church for visitors' viewing pleasure.

Moving on, we visited to what I think is appropriate to refer to as “The Holy Grail of Punk Rock Gems.” Marvin showcased writings by Patti Smith, video clips featuring John Sex, and original notes and journals kept by Richard Hell. There was also the first issue of PUNK Magazine in the bundle. I eyed the Alice in Wonderland memorabilia in the corner too.

The exhibit, I saw, “A Sanctuary for the Arts: Judson Memorial Church and the Arts” is running until January 7, 2011. Exhibitions are free and open for public viewing. Fales, for research purposes, is open to the NYU community as well as other scholars. An appointment may be necessary to view certain material, and copying rights can change per archival source.

Fales is worth the visit, even for those that despise Bobst.