Nick Savides

Red Fire Escape, Oil Painting

2023

Artist Comments
Artist Nick Savides captures a sunny afternoon view of West 20th Street from the High Line. He shifts the main focus to the red fire escape, which echoes in some of the construction objects on the street. Similarly, the towering building in the right foreground reflects the sky's blue hue and is repeated in the window reflections on the upper left. Two figures cross paths on the shaded sidewalk.

About the Artist
Nick learned to paint from his mother when he was a child, but it wasn’t until college that he decided to be a career artist. His realist images of New York City are inspired by the drama of the city–the changing light, the spontaneous magic. Nick begins his process with reference photographs from his daily life, often shooting the same scene at multiple times of the day. He brings the images back to his Brooklyn studio where he composes a scene in Photoshop, adding and subtracting elements from multiple photographs to achieve the perfect composition before beginning to paint. “As my artwork is realistic, one might be tempted to think they are copies from nature,” says the artist. “Really, they are composed–every detail is considered. It is a balance between what is seen, what is true to nature, and what can make a good painting.”

Words that describe this painting: Hopperesque, Hopper, NYC, New York, realism, realistic, cityscape, High Line, fire escape, ladder, architecture, travel, pedestrians, facade, street, road, reflection, windows, sidewalk, oilpaint, small, detailed, architecture, travel, realism, oil painting, blue

Red Fire Escape
Nick Savides
Oil painting on stretched linen
Finished white edges
Ready to hang
One-of-a-kind
Signed on front
2023
12 in. h x 9 in. w x .75 in. d
0 lbs. 12 oz.