Paint Big

The usual aftermath of tearing down a house in one of Manhattan's more dilapidated sections is a drab parking lot enclosed by scabby brick walls. Artist Allan D'Arcangelo, 37, had a different idea. Seized like many another artist these days with the urge to Paint Big, D'Arcangelo grasped at the opportunity offered by a landlord who owns a five-story tenement next to a parking lot in Manhattan's East Village. The landlord agreed to turn over the side of his building to be used for a mural, put up the price of the paints and the use of a professional scaffolder (total: $700).

Working from scale drawings and with the aid of the scaffolder, the artist finished his masterwork in just 2 1/2 days. The result: a 50-ft. by 60-ft. bucolic semiabstract that shows 36-ft.-high green grass growing, a blue sky, a white cloud and a red and yellow towerlike structure. There is also an arrow pointing topside--in case anyone needs to know which way is up.

The mural has fascinated local res idents--a mixed bag of Village hippies, Poles, Ukrainians and Puerto Ricans. "At first," says D'Arcangelo, "they thought it was going to be some sort of a sign, and kept asking which company was putting it up. We kept telling them, 'We are painting this for you.' Pretty soon, they began to like the idea." Only problem: if a new building goes up in the parking lot, there goes the mural, sealed off from sight between old wall and new.

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