Prospect Park Sunset over Teardrop Island

Prospect Park in Brooklyn is a gem. It is different everyday.

Teardrop Island, with it's single tree, is almost crafted to be like a painting itself. The island used to be overcome with phragmites, invasive weeds that can clog out native ecosystems. The other side of the small island is covered with a black tarp, to suppress the remaining root growth. I sometimes refer to this painting as "The Thin Line Between Above and Below Ground." The painting is a meditation on how appearances of nature can hide a struggle; the peaceful serenity of being in a landscape and the ongoing tension between nature and culture hidden beneath the surface are two sides of the the same coin. Surrounding a tree and it's reflection in the water, somewhere between the growth above and the roots below, we locate and make sense of our own experience.