A realist painter who often depicted his native NYC, Dinnerstein was a precursor to Bo Bartlett's heavy-handed symbolism in the American Realist Movement.
This painting depicts a scene from central park. The view is from under the Bethesda Terrace looking at the Bethesda Fountain.
You can read more about the statue here: https://www.centralpark.com/things-to-do/attractions/bethesda-fountain/
It was named after a passage from the Bible (John:2-5)
Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called... Bethesda... whoever then first after the troubling of the waters stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had.
Dinnerstein's work often depicted spiritual subjects based on the Jewish faith. Perhaps there is some spiritual significance here, or perhaps Dinnerstein is exposing a side of NYC that is only seen by natives.
This is a view of the terrace from behind the statue:
![](https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/c0add1ab-f694-435d-8b20-6d2ecf099e12.png)
This is a close-up of the statue:
![](https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/8fbc6a08-c739-4612-914f-7f8e00942dde.png)