Empire Sports Now

Dave Choate started following the Yankees in 1976 at age seven. His painting career began 21 years later. The two would join soon after. But he didn’t start out doing sports paintings. Abstract Expressionism – messy paintings that make no real sense – was his first love. He found that his abstract paintings would eventually morph into a portrait. He’d recognize a person in the mess and he’s just go with it. Portrait art wasn’t by design – it found Dave rather than Dave finding it. Being that he has a love for sports, he started to paint players that he admired, mostly from the 70’s Yankees.

Thurman Munson

Dave considers himself an Accidental Artist. He doesn’t use a strict outline or have a definite idea as to how the painting should look once completed. He builds upon every stroke and finds himself entertained, pleasantly surprised – more often frustrated — as the painting moves along. Sometimes it’s two steps forward and one step back, but he keeps trudging forward until he finds himself going down a path that works.  (more…)

New York City, the greatest city in the world, has played host to some of the greatest moments in the history of sports. Leading the pack is the 27-time World Champion New York Yankees, whose interlocking NY emblem is recognized worldwide. Madison Square Garden, referred to as the mecca of basketball and coined as the world’s most famous arena, holds a countless number of sporting events each year.

Sports are not only alive and well in New York City, but they are thriving. Residents of the five boroughs and surrounding areas are lucky enough to have so many local teams and sporting events right in their backyard. Tickets for games and events aren’t always easy to find and are rarely cheap, but everyone should experience a sporting event in New York.

The revival of the Knicks has made it hard to purchase tickets. Tickets to see the new-look Knicks are at high demand. The addition of superstar Amar’e Stoudemire has the words “the Knicks are back” on the tip of the tongues of New York basketball fans. The mid-season acquisition of Carmelo Anthony has New York buzzing. New York City is a basketball town and there is nothing better than when the Knicks are doing well. Madison Square Garden hasn’t been lit up like it has at times this year for quite a while. It is a true revival for a franchise that fell on some dark times over the last decade.  (more…)