This is a loose painting–but then again, it was a loose kind of night. I was wandering around Greenwich Village just after sunset taking pictures of the lights coming up in the bars and restaurants. It's a beautiful time of day in the city–you get all these amazing purples and greens on the streets, and the glowy lights from the windows.
Paul Motion was playing at the Vanguard that night. He was once Bill Evans' drummer, and now, at the age of 80, he's still out there, playing gigs. The show was about to start as I was walking by. I didn't think I'd be able to get in, but as it turns out, he plays there all the time, so it's actually pretty easy to get to go see him play. (Yet another thing to love about New York.)
So here's the painting from that night. Before I posted this one, I took photograps of a few other, more recent paintings that I thought I'd post instead. But I couldn't get a photograph I liked. Usually that means there's something wrong with the painting, not the camera, so I put them back on the shelf to work on some more. This one is loose and crazy, but that's pretty much how it was supposed to be, so I'm happy with it.
After Paul Motion played his set that night, I walked to Washington Square Park, where somebody had dragged a piano out to play Elton John songs. I stood there with a crowd of about 100 happy New Yorkers, singing 'Rocket Man' and wondering how I'd ever manage to get myself on a plane and go home. Somehow I did.
8 x 10 oil on board. Click here to bid. Go here to see all my paintings on eBay.