The Accidental Folk Art Movement Happening in New York City Right Now Involves Dog Owners
New York City sidewalks have always had a lot going on, but lately, there’s something colorful and unexpected happening down by your ankles. Those small dirt squares around street trees, officially called tree pits, have turned into a citywide art show. The thing is that it’s mostly about dogs and their bathroom habits.
These tree pits sit in a kind of public-private limbo. The city owns the trees, but building owners are responsible for the space around them. That arrangement has led to an unspoken turf war between gardeners, artists, and dog walkers. Out of that mild standoff, something beautiful has emerged: an accidental folk art movement featuring handmade signs, whimsical fences, and creative warnings begging dogs to “please, not here.”
Signs of Frustration Turned Into Art
Image via Wikimedia Commons/Hugo L. González
It started as a fight against pee-stained plants. Years ago, former city councilman Jimmy Van Bramer ran an “anti-dog poop” poster contest in Queens to encourage local kids to make art that encouraged cleanliness. That spirit of civic creativity never went away; it just moved to the sidewalks. Today, homemade signs pop up all over the city, taped to tree trunks or propped up next to flowers that have barely survived the latest canine visitor.
Some are simple and others are strong enough to make one guilty. One says, “Your dog is cute, but her poop isn’t.” Another goes with “Keep it clean and be green,” surrounded by cheerful butterflies and strawberries. You can’t walk more than a few blocks without seeing some version of these messages. It’s like an outdoor gallery where every block has its own curator with a Sharpie and a sense of humor.
The People Behind the Pits
Kim Johnson knows the struggle firsthand. After losing her flowers to a steady stream of dog pee outside her Upper West Side apartment, she launched Curb Allure, a company that sells stylish metal tree guards and even gives away signs approved by the city. She jokes that there’s no such thing as “tree guard police,” but plenty of New Yorkers treat their patches of dirt like personal flowerbeds.
Her friend Melissa Elstein runs a nonprofit called Love Your Street Tree Day, which hands out cheerful signs featuring happy trees and sad ones surrounded by trash. She hates the phrase “tree pit,” preferring “tree bed” because it sounds softer and more positive. In her view, if you’d keep your bed clean, why not your tree’s?
A City Divided, but Laughing About It
Image via Getty Images/Kameleon007
However, these signs are not fun for everyone. Comedian Santiago Angel poked fun at the phenomenon online, calling some of the fenced-off pits “internment camps for dogs.” While he admits it was part of his act, he also says dogs have to go somewhere. Many dog owners agree. A Reddit commenter from Harlem summed it up: if the pit is just dirt with no plants, they’re less inclined to care. Others argue that science says dog urine can harm young or damaged trees by messing with the soil’s salt balance.
Dog walkers like Marixa Gonzalez from Wags West take the middle ground. Her team always brings dogs to the curb instead of the pits, avoiding both dirty looks and dying plants. After years of walking in the city, she says the signs barely register anymore and are just part of the scenery.
Folk Art, New York Style
Walk through any borough and you’ll see how neighborhoods have their own flavor. Brownstone Brooklyn signs tend to be long and wordy, while in Alphabet City, you’ll find bright fences and funky structures around tree beds. Some pits even have names, like “El Jardín de Diego,” a little garden started by a restaurant dishwasher a decade ago.