The Blue Castle System
oil on prepared panel
5" x 7"
sold
This is the Blue Castle System diner in Passaic, New Jersey.
I usually go into these places to have a small bite, shoot the breeze with the owners and employees and observe everything that I can. With this lovely location, I was very hesitant to even enter. The clientel were a little scary looking, and I wouldn't dare attempt to eat anything prepared there. That being said, it sure makes for a nice little painting from outside.
I was on one of my fact finding missions early one summer Sunday morning, and I just came across this charming old place and was totally knocked over by it. Some subjects just scream out to me....this was surely one of those times. I did a much larger version of this piece a few months back which is available for purchase through Kerygma Gallery in Ridgewood, New Jersey.
www.kerygmagallery.com
Thanks for looking!
posted by Mark Oberndorf at 9:15 PM
1 Comments:
I'm not sure what prompted me to search for "Blue Castle," but seeing your beautifully Hopperesque painting brought back memories. I used to eat at this place as a teenager, when playing in chess tournaments at the nearby Y. I always went in with a group. The hamburgers were served on hard rolls, I think, with enormous piles of onions.
I remember what looked like a bullethole in the window, a counterman with an eyepatch, and, one time, a customer -- an old lady -- with a terrifying bunch of chin whiskers, at least an inch long. Quite a slice of life.
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