Maple Barbershop

oil on prepared panel

7" x 5"

sold


This is the Maple Barbershop in lovely downtown Ridgewood, New Jersey. I initially saw this place one night while stopped at a red light, thinking that it was a nice little quaint shop that fit into my oeuvre. I have painted 3 other barbershops around Bergen County in the past few years, so I wasn't feeling any sense of urgency to do this one. Then, on one beautifully crisp sunny morning, I happened to be in the exact same spot at the red light and glanced over at this place, and it looked completely fresh and new to me. It's fascinating that the same subject matter can be so vastly different at various times during the day. Something that is ho-hum at 7:00 p.m. can be earth shaking at 8:00 a.m. And vice versa. I guess that's why Monet painted the same haystacks and cathedrals so many times during different times of day. I just heard that some scholars in the UK plan on using his work to see how much pollution has had an effect on the landscape by comparing his paintings with modern day photos. He was so accurate in his depiction of light and atmosphere, that these folks can actually ascertain the changes that have occured over the last hundred years or so. Pretty fascinating stuff!

Bravo!