Brooklyn Bridge
When I first met Bruce Deichel I was sitting on the sidewalk near Fraunces Tavern. At that time I was painting the first of three Goldman Sachs commissions as their building went up on 85 Broad St. Bruce worked for McKinnan Securities Inc. and he and Elaine lived on Water St. with their little boy Lucas. They asked me to paint their street and I loved the feeling of that area. The buildings, except for 275 Water St, were old and the people who lived there knew each other.
The Brooklyn Bridge was being repaired, and except for the noise of the occasional machines, the street was quiet. Few cars passed by and people would stop and chat as if they all had all the time in the world. And there was the wonderful warmth of the Deichel's family.
The people in the painting are friends and relatives of Elaine and Bruce as well as their neighbors. The three running to the front is the Deichel Family. The composition created itself. The glory of the sweep of the bridge and the old buildings created their own harmony.