I took this set of photos during the winter of 2019 in Washington Heights, a neighborhood in upper Manhattan with a predominantly Dominican, working-class population. On the day that I shot these photos, I visited two locations: the first was the apartment building of the family of my father's wife, who immigrated from the Dominican Republic, and the second was the hair salon in which one of the family members earns a living.
Dominican hair salons are a New York City staple, and many women go to these salons for the social outlets they provide (in addition to a killer blowout!). They are a hub for NYC Latin American women to chat, gossip, laugh, vent, and be themselves. The particular hair salon featured in this photo story is managed by my father's wife's sister. The shop has managed to weather the pandemic and is still in business. But like many other small businesses in NYC, they are struggling to keep the shop going in the post-COVID era of rising inflation and rents.