Night On The Town, Chicago Theater (2015)Oil painting
by Leon Sarantos

This portrait portrays a man alone, standing in front of the Chicago Theater on State Street. He stands in the shadows, a solitary contrast to the gaiety of the marquee above him. The Chicago Theater, with its iconic marquee, is a historic landmark. It was built in 1921 by Cornelius W. Rapp and George Rapp in their signature Neo-Baroque French-revival style. The distinctive Chicago Theatre marquee is an unofficial emblem of the city and appears frequently in film, television, artwork, and photography.

This painting is influenced by Edward Hopper, particularly the sense of isolation in his urban paintings. My art is inspired by Hopper’s advice to his students, "It isn't the subject that counts but what you feel about it.” The unifying theme in my art is to express the feeling or mood evoked by the subject of my painting, whether happiness or introspection. I approach the people I am painting with an attitude of respect, seeking to portray the dignity of each person in their own individual way. I build up colors through layers, each layer peeks through and adds its contribution. Small dashes of color dance around the painting for subtle stimulation and movement. Contrasting color values keep a strong separation of adjacent objects, both human and inanimate. Bold black lines further delineate the edges of the objects. The edges of the canvas are also painted black, so that the painting can be hung without a frame.

For sales in the U.S., this painting is shipped as is, hung on stretcher bars.
For international sales: the painting is shipped as a rolled canvas In order to keep shipping rates low,. The rolled canvas is wrapped around wooden stretcher bars that can be used to re-stretch it after arrival.

Materials used:

Oil painting

Details:

• Oil painting on Canvas
• One of a kind artwork
• Size: 60.96 x 50.8 x 2.54cm (unframed) / 71.12 x 55.88cm (actual image size)
• Signed on the back
• Style: Abstract
• Subject: People and portraits

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