I’d often go visit the East River Esplanade to get a taste of some trees and greenery and a nice view of the river at street level. Unfortunately, my idyllic experience was compromised by the steady hum and roar of traffic on the FDR highway just above. The sound of ferry engines idling at the pier, spewing black clouds of exhaust was definitely an additional downer. The worst of the noise polluters were the helicopters taking off and landing at the heliport at 33rd street. The decibel level was off the chart. Forget listening to music or talking on the phone. You’d be lucky if you could hear yourself think. Nevertheless, for NYC, the location had such a beautiful view. I put up with it as much as possible and managed to complete this lovely drawing.
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This drawing captures the buildings being erected at Gantry Plaza State Park in Hunter’s Point section of Long Island City. My perspective is from the East River Esplanade in Manhattan, north of the 34th Street ferry terminal. I drew this back in 2013. For a comparison of a more recent view, click here for the Google street view.
I made this original “Long Island City” drawing freehand using lead pencil and paper. I think that it looks great as a wrap-around print on a white, glossy ceramic mug, and is available for purchase.
