WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK
BY: CHRISTI SCOFIELD
24” X 18” Mixed Media on Board
Cocktails & Curiosities Series
On View at Arts & Crafts Beer Parlor
Many people consider Washington Square Park the heart of Greenwich Village. There are so many things to share about this park from history to pop culture to architecture but here are a few tidbits that are referenced in the artwork.
The chessboard sky is a reference to the park’s famous outdoor chess tables which you can see in many films like Searching for Bobby Fischer.
The Washington Square Arch was erected to celebrate the centennial of George Washington’s inauguration which happened nearby on Wall Street in 1789 when New York City was the capital of the United States. Originally made out of wood, the permanent marble arch was designed by renowned architect Stanford White. The arch is 77 feet tall and is patterned after
Paris’s Arch de Triomphe (which is 164 feet tall).
Originally, I was going to include the Hanging Elm in this piece but felt that the park is so vibrant and full of life that I decided to change it to an homage to Edward Hopper and one of his pieces called Summertime that is full of hope and possibility. The woman from Hopper’s piece is leaning on a decorative lamp post from the fountain area of the park. Hopper lived for over 50 years in #3 Washington Square park in the famous row of Greek Revival townhomes shown in the background of this piece.
Learn more about the history and pop culture of this storied park in Tour #2 of Greenwich Village in the Cocktails & Curiosities New York City Walking Tours App series.