Year 13 of my 20-Year-Guggenheim Series called for something special… but I found myself rudderless. That is… until I spotted a brilliant photo on the Guggenheim Museum Twitter account… snapped by @NYCLOVESNYC — aka, Noel Y. Calingasan.

Today’s #FrankLloydWrightFridays illustration is by @nyclovesnyc—“I made this image to depict this white 'temple of spirit,' a respite from the fast-paced New York life represented by the bright red light trails on 5th Avenue.” pic.twitter.com/f4t0qW9KC5

— Guggenheim Museum (@Guggenheim) September 18, 2020

I’m sure you can see why I was so taken. As it happens, I reached out to Noel, and he graciously allowed me to use his photo as the source image for this painting.

And thanks to Noel, “Bright Lights, Big City Guggenheim” was born — named, with an obvious nod, to the brilliant Jay McInerney (a gent I spotted at Elaine’s a few times, back in the day).

You may notice something different… I didn’t begin with an underpainting. Why? Simply to approach this work differently. I carefully drew the entire picture first… something new (the approach), something borrowed (source image), something blue (the sky).

I focused on keeping the palette true to Noel’s capture, with slight deviations. The annex (the grid to the left of the turret) is a bit stylized… but tonally accurate. The sky is true-to-form, as is 5th Avenue in the foreground.

It was fun creating around the void of the drawn Guggenheim. Each section was painted with careful gradients. This work is essentially variations of orange and blue duking it out… like the New York Met’s and their fan base… thumbs down and boos… a fine tapestry — right Steve Cohen?

Creating a two-tone gradient to capture the shadowy base vs. the sun kissed rotunda was a bit frightening. At this point, I wasn’t sure if it would all come together, as the two lighting scenarios merged.

But, faith in the process prevailed. Pleased with this gradient… I realize it’s classless to pat yourself on the back, but in painting and solid tee shots on the long par-5 9th… at times, a pass is warranted.

With the Gugg nailed… along with the space around the Gugg… it was time to add the third different lighting scenario in the lit-up undersides.

Again… faith in the process. It wasn’t until I ventured into the darker shades that I realized it would work. Hare be damned, painting is a tortoise game.

At this point, I began to smell the finish. That sweet feeling inspires daily pre-alarm wake-ups. Like a person, the Guggenheim’s windows are the eyes… a window into the soul.

And with yet another set of palettes, I set out to bring this baby to completion, one 5X0 brush stroke at a time. The street sign and traffic lights were fun to paint. The mood of this painting felt very 80’s… accordingly, I was vacillating between “Bonfire of the Vanities” and “Bright Lights, Big City” for a title… alas, the latter struck a chord. Both excellent reads with fabulous big screen adaptations.

And boom! Bright Lights, Big City Guggenheim… the 13th in my 20-Year-Series. Just seven years to go… and the series will be ready for the grand exhibition. What do you say Guggenheim, shall we show them at your place or mine?

Thank you again Noel, I really appreciate you.