This uninhibited monochrome work, devoid of the tension and mystery which are almost unavoidable in Nesterova's work, is a testament to first voyages of discovery. After her arrival in the United States Nesterova's traditional figures – reminiscent of plaster statues – have become markedly more lively and are covered with eyes, from their boots to their cameras: ‘I was so amazed, that I felt as though my whole being consisted of eyes'. The picture was painted in New York in 1989, during her second trip to America, from the balcony of the flat where she lived and worked, where there actually was a little balcony with a griffin. As always the artist has created a landscape; but she has been so struck by the city, that references to the real cityscape break through into the fantastic view. Faina Balakhovskaia