#0122 New York Mercantile Exchange Trading Floor

I was asked to do a painting of the trading floor for the New York Mercantile Exchange. 
The scene itself is so overwhelming and chaotic that I felt the only chance I had of getting 
any real sense of interpretation was to make it as large as possible. Two canvases
were made, each one 5 x 6'6". When put side by side, which is the way they're supposed 
to be viewed, you get a picture 5'h x 13'w.  First I wanted to get a sense of the vastness 
and importance of the room: the computer terminals, the electronic board, the sound
absorbing walls and, of course, the trading pits. Once I was satisfied with the scale and 
structure and I had painted in the background scenery, I began to put in the traders. The 
bell rings at 10:00 AM, trading starts with frenzy and continues till the 2:30 PM
closing bell. So, for four and a half hours, every day for almost four months, I would paint 
these people in the act of trading. A very intense place, and I hope I captured its energy.

Size: 5' x 13'
Date: December 2001 - March 2002
Status: Mercantile Exchange, NY, NY
Medium: Mercantile Exchange, NY, NY

john chambers - 92 vine street - lexington, ma 02420 - 781-860-0680
john@wingonwing.com

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