Pearson's Wine and Liquor... A family owned business established in 1933 when "Doc" Eisenberg bought Pearson's Pharmacy on Wisconsin Avenue in Washington, DC. At the time, alcohol was sold only by PRESCRIPTION because it was during prohibition. When booze became legal again (whew) liquor sales overtook the small neighborhood pharmacy. So Doc, and his wife Sarah, opened Pearson's Liquor Annex - the Pearson's we know of today. The drugstore is now a gas station!

Steve Silver, and his wife Rae (daughter of "Doc"), began running the store when Doc retired. I knew Doc as his caretaker would bring him by in the mornings for a short time. He could barely walk and I never heard him speak. He must have felt at home there.

One day Steve showed me a page from a magazine, he had carried it around for a while, and wondered if I could "replicate" the look of this advertisement on the facade of Pearson's. It was a challenge indeed. A large wall for me to do my thing - public art. The year was 2001. We all remember where we were on September 11, 2001... It was a beautiful morning and I was on the scaffold just doing my thing when Rae came out and thought it best that I go home. Little did I know at that time that this day would forever change all of our lives forever.

There was much work and planning to be done. Old signs and marques had to be removed with a crane, prime and paint the entire facade before I even got to lay a brush on the surface. Days went by and I worked on occasionally being summoned down to discuss the work at hand. I loved speaking with passersby, many my neighbors, and it enriched the entire experience. Of course, Steve and Rae were great to work with day in and day out. I got to know them so well, good, honest people running a family business - it doesn't get more real than that.

Well, here we are 13 years later, and it still stands as one of my favorite pieces that I have created. Thanks go to Steve and Rae for believing in me and giving me the opportunity to do what I love to do. Enjoy.

To improve the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts. ~ Thoreau