About the painting
The Camel billboard in Times Square, which was in place from 1941 to 1966, was an iconic advertisement -- it released a puff of smoke every four seconds.
The billboard, located at the Claridge Hotel on Broadway between 43rd and 44th Streets, was the creation of famed ad man Douglas Leigh, who was responsible for transforming the Great White Way with his creative advertisements.
''I'm an idea man, a concept guy,'' he told the New York Times in 1998.
His idea for the Camel billboard sending smoke rings across Broadway was a massive hit. The billboard was updated regularly to show different figures such as military members, businessmen and athletes enjoying their smoke. 
The attraction wowed visitors for a quarter-century, and it wowed me, too, when I found a photograph of the billboard in a tourist’s 1954 travel photo album that I recently purchased. I used that photograph as a reference for my painting.
 
Details
This is an original watercolor painting that I completed in December 2023. It will come matted in white, unframed, and ready to be framed in a standard frame. The painting measures 12x16.
 
Helping a good cause
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this painting will be donated to Covenant House, a nonprofit devoted to providing housing and care to youth experiencing homelessness and survivors of human trafficking. For more information on Covenant House, click here.