About Town
My history in New York and beyond.
I came to New York in 1987 for college and have since lived with several relatives in Brooklyn, in a studio with a Murphy bed in Murray Hill, two apartments in Prospect Heights (or Crown Heights, if you want to get technical about it), the Bronx for a summer, the Upper East Side for a summer, and then to our current apartment in Chelsea, where I have lived ever since.
Over that time, I have had several relationships, one ending in marriage and two daughters. During my nearly twenty years of single life after college, I loved going out — New York’s restaurants, bars, parks, and clubs — sketching all the while. With a small notebook and travel watercolor set, I captured it all.
Manhattan
Barnes & Noble on Union Square
Buildings along the southern edge of Bryant Park.
Omer Klein Quartet
Rock Garden at Chelsea Piers Park
Backlit bar at Manahatta.
Rooftop Bar in the 20s
Mansard roof with two-story windows on Upper West Side.
Art Deco styled Barnes & Noble at Lincoln Center, now closed.
Cloisters from Fort Tryon Park.
Brew House with Daniel and Eric. I like the line style and coloring in this one.
Belvedere Castle, Central Park on a bright, sunny day.
Big Daddy Restaurant on Park Avenue South
A detailed sketch of the bar at Benny's Burritos on Greenwich Avenue in the West Village.
Painting with Amy in Central Park at sunset.
Dan and I were regulars at Blue Moon Cafe, Mexican restaurant on 8th Avenue before it closed.
Trees compete for attention with Billionaire's Row Towers.
Afternoon in Central Park
Dinner with my parents at Charlie Brown's Steakhouse (in NJ).
A quick sketch while waiting to have dinner with Karin at Moustache, our favorite Mediterranean place in the West Village.
Colbeh with Amy, Mom, and Rachel
A trip to DUMBO with Cynthia.
L'Express on Park Avenue South.
Dinner at Davis Park, Fire Island.
Roman arches at 511 Lexington Ave
Alouette, Upper West Side, 95th and Broadway, Jenny territory.
Diner with Karin at The Greek Kitchen
Jimmys with Julia
The amazing lighted bar at Joe's Pub next to the Public Theatre.
When I was going out with Karin, I spent a lot of time in SoHo.
L'Express Notebook
Waiting for the subway.
The canyons of lower Manhattan. We've taken many trips to Governor's Island — the ferry terminal is across the street.
A late day shadow of a tree slowly creeps along a wall in Park Slope, Brooklyn.
Quick sketch across from Moustache restaurant.
Interesting architecture on the Upper West Side.
City Hall subway station.
A business networking lunch with Sue Green and others at Keens Steak House in Midtown. Antique pipes lined the ceiling.
Tree at Heckscher Playground in Central Park, regulars there with the girls.
A very early sketch of buildings (I think around NYU).
Barnes & Noble building on Union Square.
Pio Pio, Upper West Side.
I had the fortune of eating at the Pink Teacup, a longstanding West Village favorite for Southern Food, before it closed in 2010. It has subsequently reopened in Brooklyn.
Statue of Liberty from Sailboat
Having fun at Bowlmore Lanes
A murky night with the old ships at South Street Seaport before the complex was torn down and redeveloped.
It's good (essential) to get out of the city now and again. Hiking in Sterling Forest during the fall, my favorite season — the vibrant colors devoid from most of the City.
Synagogue
While on the Hazon Retreat, I took the opportunity to experiment with being looser and using contrasting colors for increased drama.
Triple Crown on 7th Avenue and 29th, a favorite stomping ground for Dan and I when we worked across the street.
A quick watercolor of Manhattan whipping by from a boat on the Hudson River
Fat Cats — the underground playroom for NYU students — checkers, chess, billiards, ping pong, and usually a band. Giant fans to keep the place cool.
The striped walls and groovy rhythms of the famous Lenox Lounge in Harlem.
A sketch of Manhattan from a jazz cruise with Amy that circled the island.
Schilers Liquor Bar — I love the feel of this bar on the Lower East Side with its white tiles columns and 1920s lighting and electric buzz of the patrons. I was on a date with Jenny when I did this.
Grooving out at the Celebrate Brooklyn Festival in Prospect Park.
Synagogues
At one point in my life (2006), I become fascinated with synagogues and their wonderful architecture. It’s interesting how architects came to design these houses of worship — whether copying the stained glass window approach from cathedrals, blending other cultural styles, like the Moorish Central Synagogue with its onion domes, or going modern, like Reform congregation Temple Shaaray Tefilah, to blend in with the American culture.
