Gentrification

New York Brownstone (2015 ink and watercolour A4)

A few weeks ago I had a spare Sunday in New York City and was able to visit the new Whitney museum, down in the gentrified Meatpacking District. I read somewhere that New York is losing its neighbourhoods, with the whole island so expensive that it’s becoming a homogenised space for the very wealthy. The old ethnic areas are rapidly becoming part of an overpriced whole. Certainly a couple of years ago I stayed in a bed and breakfast in Harlem, something that would have been unthinkable 30 years ago when I first visited the city.

On my way back to the midtown area from the Whitney, I came upon this charming house somewhere around 19th Street or so. Outside was a skip, a sure sign that this, too, was in the process of gentrification. It was a beautiful Spring afternoon and the house begged to be drawn. When I got home I painted it in these vibrant colours to reflect the feeling of the day. In reality it was a pale blue. Let’s just call it artistic licence.