During my time in New York in 2015, I was privileged to set foot in this monumental example of 20th century modern architecture. Frank Lloyd Write’s 5th Avenue masterpiece, The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, has fascinated me ever since and tackling this piece with simple monochromatic paints was a joy.
The monochrome finish was inspired by the grey weather under which I visit the Guggenheim. The Manhattan snow in those winter months tends to muffle the metropolitan bustle, and the quiet of midday 5th Avenue was perfectly contrasted with the scale of the colossal structures.
I layered acrylic paints with loose palette-knife strokes and slowly developed the forms of the structure. The diagonal composition of the piece aims to causes dizziness, to mimic the spiralling gallery of the interior. I also adopted a looser, more modern, style in the creation of this piece, drawing upon my memories of the Modern Art galleries on the inside.