I admire these people on the park bench, sitting there all bundled up, reading their books with mittens on. They are not always the same people, but someone is always there with the first hint of spring, to feel once more a bit of sun on the cheek, to breather a little fresh air - to be outside!

My window in New York overlooks this little park, and I have observed the passing scene in all seasons, thinking one day I would paint it. I chose early March because I was challenged by the tangled mass of bare treetops, and because it interested me to make the people, rather than the landscape, show the beginning of the end of winter!

- Nita Engle