The Gentleman's Agreement, Digital Art, 2023
When I moved to Philadelphia in 1982, there was a so-called "gentleman's agreement" that no building would be built in Center City that was higher than Philadelphia City Hall. Developers occasionally attempted to bypass this "agreement," but were not successful until the mid-1980s. At that point, developers complained that Philadelphia's skyline was outmoded when compared to other cities. Preservationists argued that the historical emphasis on preservation of the original architecture gave the city a tremendous advantage when compared to cities that had bulldozed many of their original buildings. The Philadelphia Inquirer and other newspapers carried articles and letters debating the issue for quite some time but the "gentleman's agreement" did not survive the 1980s and City Hall has been eclipsed by many taller buildings. I painted the original of the above as a reference to this debate by blending the new and the old into a pattern.
Vector drawings for the final art, 2023
The Gentleman's Agreement, Watercolor on Paper, 7" x 10", 1988
