Greywacke Ballet
18 x 24
Oil on Stretched Canvas
I spent 26 years in Central Park playing the classical guitar; much of it, here in this arch. The Greywacke Arch - so named, for the eponymous sandstone upon which it stands. That's the grey stone behind the dancers. Greywacke.
I sat in this (and other) arches and played Bach, Albeniz, Scarlatti, etc. on the guitar. You can hear it here, if you like. I collected tips, sold CDs, and watched the world pass by.
This is Central Park, New York City, the home of...pretty much everything - including me. Those two ballerinas,who just happened to pass through the arch while I was in there and took a lucky photo, could be world class professional dancers. This is blocks from Lincoln Center, The Metropolitan Museum of Art (which would be visible outside the mouth of the arch, had I painted it), The NYC Ballet, NYC Opera, NYC You Name It.
Now, living in NM instead of NY, rather than playing here in my beloved arch, I painted it - as countless others before me; but never exactly as I did.
Jeez, if I had known I had this painting talent, I could have wasted my life trying to make it as an artist, instead of wasting it trying to make it as a classical guitarist.
Note: I would like to credit Brian Sussman, my long time close friend, who helped me make this a much better painting by his astute observations and suggestions.
-MF