This is a painting I completed around the time coronavirus was first making the headlines, and the possibilities of a pandemic and subsequent lockdown were fast becoming very real. The photos I used as reference material were ones I had taken in Manhattan two years before when I marveled at the dynamism of this bustling metropolis. In this painting, however, a darkness has descended upon the city, and the cars, bicycles, and citizens have all but vanished. The city that never sleeps has slipped into a state of hibernation, and the hustle and bustle have been supplanted by an atmosphere of silent tension. The painting is not, however, an elegy or requiem for New York, nor any city for that matter. As one looks down the urban corridor to the end of the proverbial tunnel, there are indications of activity, and flickers of neon. In this sense, the painting is not so much about the darkness, as it is about the light. It is a painting of hope and a testament to the resilience and resolve of humankind in the face of adversity.