Close As It Gets
By Robert Beck

I’ve waited two years to paint something Zabar’s related. It’s not that it wasn’t on my radar. Zabar’s is like the Statue of Liberty/Empire State Building of the Upper West Side. As I was painting, people would stand in front of me and take photos of the sign over the door before they went in. The sign, not the fish or cheese.

I knew that painting downstairs in the deli wasn’t going to happen. There is no place I could set up and be out of the unrelenting flow of customer traffic. Think whitewater rafting. It doesn’t appear Zabar’s has any difficulty selling food. The issue is getting people in the door, served, and out, so more people can come in. The food and service is great. The borderline chaos at peak hours is part of the attraction.

This painting was spur-of-the-moment, as I was on my way back from going to ask to paint in another business two blocks away. That place was down steps and back a hallway. I found the door locked, but I could hear people inside, and the pot smell was intense. I figured even if I did get permission, I would only last a few minutes before goofing off the hairs on my paint brushes and all the amazing colors I had, so I bailed. I was walking back to my studio when I passed  Zabar’s.

I have considered asking to paint upstairs in the kitchenware department, but when I went past the front of the building, I realized that just walking through the front door is an iconic UWS experience. I went to my studio (a block and a half away), got my kit, and found a space along the curb where the mitten guy sets up when it gets cold.

The crowd of people inside is matched by the throng on the Broadway sidewalk, including quite a few people in Zabar’s uniforms.  A school bus dropped off a load of children, all of whom had to be inspected and questioned by their parents immediately. The kids wanted to watch me, but the parents saw no value in it. I seem to be on every kid’s radar, but adults can almost knock me over and not be aware of it. I understand it’s unusual to come across a painter on UWS streets. I’ve been doing this for decades and never saw one.

If I included the volume of people that were going past me you wouldn’t see the store. The door only opened when somebody approached it, so my view inside was occasional and always had somebody in the middle. That’s not a complaint. That’s my subject.

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See more of Robert Beck’s work and visit his UWS studio at www.robertbeck.net. Let him know if you have a connection to an archetypical UWS place or event that would make a good West Side Canvas subject. Thank you!

Note: Before Robert Beck started West Side Canvas, his essays and paintings were featured in Weekend Column. See Robert Beck’s earlier columns here and here.

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