BROOKLYN Neighborhoods

Brooklyn's Neighborhoods. Their names conjure images. Their streets show both a Brooklyn sameness and a uniqueness that hints at neighborhood pride. This Drawing is an homage to the neighborhoods and the architecture - and a helpful tool, after many visits to sprawling, beautiful and gritty Brooklyn, to get the neighborhoods straight!

The neighborhoods are named and framed over a vintage map background. Hand-drawn Brooklyn streetscapes from a variety of neighborhoods frame the map.

Find the BROOKLYN Neighborhoods PRINT

HERE in My Shop

I {Heart} Philly

These balloons bobbing above my booth lifted my spirits, along with the gorgeous day, good fortune, beautiful surroundings, and lovely people of center city Philadelphia.

Taking a strawberry break.

A street fair is ideal here, on a perfect day in the heart of center city. Tables surrounded the Old Pine Street Church block and neighbors and passersby stopped to look, chat, buy all of my Phildelphia prints and postcards. It was good fortune that the block I selected to draw for my first Philly streetscape drawing was in pointing distance, directly across from the front facade of the Church. A few residents of the block were excited to purchase the prints and invited me to tour their homes and make additional drawings. So I am planning Philly: Part 2, another trip to see more of this phenomenal city and make some special custom architectural drawings.

Here is one of the homes on the 400 Block of Pine Street:

We were bewitched by the butterfly stair. Almost all original floors, door, hardware in the 217-year old 4-story townhouse.

I heard the legend that runaway slaves were housed here en route to Camden NJ. Then I saw the tunnel that led from the basement of this house, under Pine Street, to the Church. And the hidden stairway that led to concealed attic space. {wow!} The paintings at the entry were also purported to be the work of those slaves, reminiscent of their ancestors' homelands.

I think the t-o-t-c Print of the 400 Block of Pine Street looks perfect in this home whose front facade also happens to be the center of that streetscape drawing. I loved exploring the neighborhoods of South Philly, too, getting a cheesesteak at Cosmi's Deli and having a mouth-watering look at the venerable Termini Bakery. And a quick but comprehensive driving tour through the Italian Market, Boathouse Row, and many other spots that beckon me back to Philadelphia!

All Thanks to my good friend, Beth. Check her out on etsy!

PHILADELPHIA Pine Street: Postcards, Too!

Find them HERE in MY SHOP

PHILADELPHIA Pine Street

The 400 Block of Pine Street in the heart of the City of Brotherly Love exhibits a diversity unlike most blocks I've seen. A plethora of architectural styles will make you wonder where in the world you are, but look for the flags and stoops and you'll know it's Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

An 1842 city map in pale blue lies behind the streetscape drawing, and the block is marked with - what else? - a flag. This is the town of Betsy Ross (whom I played in the fifth grade play) and a legendary history of patriotism. This streetscape, drawn in spring, has a surprise in the center. It's bursting with pink blooms that will litter the street with pink petals.

I'll be selling these prints and all the other prints, postcards, and books Saturday May 7 at the 38th Annual Old Pine Street Church Flea Market & Neighborhood Festival. If you happen to be in Philly...

Or, find the PHILADELPHIA Print in MY SHOP

Off to Philly!!!

PULASKI Square: Postcards, Too!

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Pulaski Square in Green

I always took a moment to gaze or glance at Pulaski Square as I biked around or walked through it. No statue or fountain adorns its center, just a mass of thick bushes. But the TREES! They are magnificant, arching just perfectly to form a high, ballooning canopy of live oak boughs and moss. Not only the leafy ceiling, but the grass is truly greener here, too. I hope I've paid homage to Pulaski's greenness with this newest Print. The perimeter architecture of this Square is prim and content to nestle in the boughs as the trees completely overwhelm the square, and the ward - for effect.Pulaski Square is welcomed into the small but growing collection of SAVANNAH SQUARES Map-Drawings. << Find Pulaski Square Print FOR SALE in my SHOP >>

Though I had a few photos of Pulaski, the drawing would not have been possible to create from this distance without the help of my camera girl on the scene, Ashley Bennett. Big Thanks!