In early 2011, I did a small painting that is still one of my personal favorites…”NYC:Taxi (winter)”.  The small 16″ x 12″ painting evoked the classic New York City street scene in winter, which I viewed from the window of The Museum of Modern Art (MOMA). The woman I saw from my perch actually had the hat on that matched the color of the taxi she was trying to hail.

When I returned to New York City this past summer, of course I went over to MOMA.  And there I looked out the same window, and saw the same street scene in a totally different light.

I began to sketch from the photos with the winter painting in mind.  I wanted this small painting to echo the first.

The isolation of the small figure hailing the taxi is still there as in the first painting, but the surroundings have changed with the season.

The middle of the work, where decisions about color and lightness are made.  I can go back and forth for days deciding on contrast, brightness and emphasis.

 

And finally, it is complete.

It has been a journey, but I love the story these two paintings tell.

Click on “workshop” at the top of the page for information on the September destination creativity workshop in Bath, England.