Robert Beck

New Hope

Writer at West Side Rag

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Articles

West Side Canvas: Elephants on the Upper West Side

2 months ago | westsiderag.com | Robert Beck

By Robert BeckThere is a lot to like about elephants. They are pretty much a stand-alone species. We can start with the ears. Evolution took a lot of animals in a binaural direction, but nobody got a pair of head-slappers like the elephant. And they have a trunk—essentially a nose that’s a hand. Wouldn’t that be great? Certainly helpful when you have a couple of bags of groceries in your arms and the door is locked. Tusks are a useful set of kit as well.
UWS Canvas: An Electrifying Situation on the Upper West Side

Jan 9, 2025 | westsiderag.com | Robert Beck

in ART, COLUMNS By Robert BeckAnd so it was, on a cold day in October, fluorescent green cones supporting yellow caution tape suddenly appeared on the east side of Central Park West, neatly sequestering the subway ventilation grates and one of the vintage street lamps. Construction happens all the time on the UWS, and more often than not, the purpose is unavailable to the civilian.
West Side Canvas: A Cab Ride to the Cathedral With Robert Beck

Nov 27, 2024 | westsiderag.com | Robert Beck

in ART, COLUMNS By Robert Beck“Island Song”The cab was taking us to St. John the Divine from where we hailed it near Lincoln Center. It headed up Broadway to 72nd and kept to the right onto Amsterdam for a straight shot to Morningside Heights. We were going to hear the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra perform Beethoven’s 9th Symphony along with a choral performance of Ode to Joy. It was a warm, late summer evening with much to look at. People were out on Amsterdam, walking, riding, eating.
West Side Canvas: The Haircut

Oct 17, 2024 | westsiderag.com | Robert Beck

in ART, COLUMNS By Robert BeckI don’t require much when it comes to a haircut. Oh sure, there was a day when I sported an impressive mop of hair, but that was way long ago. Now, I have a thin gray fur around the sides and not much of anything on top. I used it up when I was young. Nobody told me. Cutting my hair comes with a challenge. If the edge where the fringe meets the scalp — I think of it as the coastline — isn’t handled just right, in a week I start to look like a vegetable brush.
West Side Canvas: The Piano Player and the Painter; Dispatch 2 From Verdi Square

Sep 19, 2024 | westsiderag.com | Robert Beck

in ART, COLUMNS By Robert BeckI came early to Verdi Square to paint the man who plays music every weekend. He wasn’t there when I arrived, but since he’s always occupied the same spot when I’ve seen him, I set up facing that way in anticipation and started putting in the landscape. It wasn’t long before he came across the square with all his gear in one of those fold-up shopping carts. His keyboard was sticking out the top.
West Side Canvas: ‘Come Fly With Me’ at Manny’s Bistro

Aug 8, 2024 | westsiderag.com | Robert Beck

in ART, COLUMNS, OUTDOORS By Robert BeckIt’s so much easier to get around in high summer. So many people are away. The traffic, the noise, everything is just…less. You can walk down the street without maintaining a defensive posture and stop to look at something without 15 people piling up behind you. Summer is flowered dresses, late afternoon breezes, and Sunday evening music at Manny’s Bistro. Manny’s was one of the places I painted first for my column in the Rag.
West Side Canvas: St. Agnes Library, ‘Oasis on Amsterdam’

Jun 27, 2024 | westsiderag.com | Robert Beck

in ART, COLUMNS By Robert BeckThe library I was taken to as a child was a house built in the late 1700s and given to the town in 1929 expressly to be used for that purpose. I remember turning right just past the desk and running to the shelves in the corner where they had two books on magic. I haven’t been to that library in 60 years. However, I can still do a couple of sleight-of-hand tricks well enough to fool an eight-year-old.
West Side Canvas: Operation on a Bernese

Jun 13, 2024 | westsiderag.com | Robert Beck

in ART, COLUMNS By Robert BeckThe morning waiting room at the Westside Veterinary Center welcomed a continuous flow of people and their pets. The dog beside me, reminded of past allergy shots and nail clippings, voiced her anxiety with a steady howl ranging from an apprehensive whine to a full-out bay. I calmed her down with some rubs and scratches, and ended up smelling like an old basset hound. For the rest of my visit, I was of great interest to the other animals.
National Grid’s Proposed Rate Hike Draws Deep Concern From Watchdog Group

May 29, 2024 | nynow.wmht.org | Scott Willis |Robert Beck

A utility watchdog group is expressing deep concern about National Grid’s rate hike proposal. The plan is likely to impact Central New Yorke customers customers already struggling to pay their bills. The Public Utility Law Project, or PULP, closely monitors all rate hike requests. Executive Director and counsel Laurie Wheelock says low-income consumers are especially vulnerable"Overall, when it comes to energy affordability, New Yorkers in general are struggling," Wheelock said.
West Side Canvas: Where and When the Wisteria?

May 16, 2024 | westsiderag.com | Robert Beck

in ART, COLUMNS, OUTDOORS By Robert BeckThere are many private gardens on the Upper West Side, but this one caught my fancy. It has lovely plants and is a delightful place to hang out, but its big claim is the wisteria. The wisteria started decades ago at a lowly ground level in the courtyard, eventually making its way up to the third-floor apartment deck, where it’s single stem discovered open sky and a master gardener. Now it’s King.