Marin Circle, Berkeley (Four Bears Fountain) I frequently pass the four bears fountain at Marin Circle in Berkeley. The circle offers many views of the fountain. In any season and light, each view of the fountain is engaging. This painting depicts the fountain the way I visualize it from memory, combining multiple perspectives. In reality, one cannot see all of the surrounding streets and spaces between them from any one point - even from a bird's eye view. But in the painting, all of the radiating streets are visible. The result is similar to David Hockney's photo collages. Several views of Marin Circle are pieced together to create the illusion of a real space.
Monkey Island Bike Rider I have painted Monkey Island (the park located on Claremont Boulevard and Oak Knoll Terrace in Berkeley) several times using the same approach. In these paintings I depict the neighborhood the way it sits in my memory. The tree tunnels and island cannot be located in one rectangular painting using conventional perspective. Because the the tree tunnels and the island of grass are integral to my memory of the space, I have pushed them all into the four corners of the painting. Another important element of this painting is the time of day. The shadows are long, and the filtered light gives a sense of protection. The fleeting figures also play an important role. One feels the passage of time in a special space that is at once real and imaginary at the same time.
Place Furstenberg Paris, David Hockney
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