Standing where El Greco stood outside Toledo, Spain

El Greco and Toledo, Spain

I received a book as a Christmas gift titled “Spanish Art in New York,” which acts as a guide book to the museums, libraries, and other public spaces in New York City that have art works by significant Spanish artists. As I was flipping through the book, I happened upon El Greco’s well-known painting “View … Read more

Horses charging through the sky in Madrid

Quadrigas Higinio de Basterra in Madrid

My first night in Madrid, despite a full day of exploring, I was still energized to keep walking the streets and taking in as many sights as I could. At one point, I was in the Cortes neighborhood, which is just south of the famous Calle Gran Via, and walking along Calle de Alcala. This … Read more

Remnant of SoHo’s artistic past

the exterior of the former OK Harris Gallery in SoHo

I was walking up West Broadway the other day, when I spotted this figure on the exterior of 383 West Broadway, current home of “Free People,” a women’s clothing store. But this figure comes from the past, back a few decades, when SoHo was the center of the art world in New York City. This … Read more

That guy in the antiques store looks familiar

familiar face at the antiques store

I was in Minneapolis over the holidays, and stopped in at one of my favorite antiques store: Hunt & Gather, at 50th and Xerxes in the southwest corner of the city. It’s an antiques store that is crammed full to the ceiling with interesting and unusual items, with all displays expertly curated and installed to … Read more

Real estate listing with famous art reproductions

Famous art reproductions found in a real estate listing

I was looking at some real estate listings online when I noticed some famous art reproductions all in the same house in Newburgh, NY. The first one that grabbed my attention was this copy of “Juan de Pareja,” by the Spanish artist Diego Velázquez (the original is circa 1650), installed in this turquoise blue hallway. … Read more

The pickup truck with the Rothko vibes

blue pickup truck

I was running errands when I noticed this blue pickup truck on the road next to me. It was the door in particular that grabbed my attention; there was something about the painted repairs that didn’t come close to fixing the original problem that made me think of Mark Rothko’s paintings. Why? Let’s take a … Read more