As a born and raised New Yorker, you get used to your surroundings changing quite frequently. Although he passed in 1999, Martin Wong’s work continues to remind us that history can be preserved through art.

MoMA shared this wonderful short documentary giving you just a small idea of how large of an impact Wong made.

This short documentary tells the unknown story of how the back of this painting got covered in graffiti. Before Martin Wong’s painting “Houston Street” became part of our collection, rumors circulated about another artwork on its back. When our team replaced the stretcher, they had a chance to study a hidden piece that hadn’t been seen in over 40 years. We invited graffiti artist Sharp (Aaron Goodstone) to the conservation lab to see the painting for the first time since it was shown in 1983. He and filmmaker Charlie Ahearn (Wild Style) share their personal memories of Wong, the impact of his friendship and art, and this intense period in downtown New York. Conversations with conservators, photographs and research discoveries from Wong’s archives, and Ahearn’s video footage of Wong painting in his cramped apartment studio unearth lost paintings and the hidden and moving story of Wong’s “Houston Street.”