In a rare nighttime scene, The M7 to Harlem depicts a favored locale of Richard Estes', the area surrounding Lincoln Center on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Facing west, Estes skillfully captures the distinctive architecture of Alice Tully Hall, a concert hall affiliated with the esteemed Julliard School. The painting derives its title from the prominent presence of the northbound M7 bus positioned at the center of its composition. Through the frosted translucent dots and the slight gap between two glass panels, Estes provides subtle indications that he has captured the scene through the glass of a bus stop shelter. However, it is worth noting that there is no bus shelter directly across from Alice Tully Hall, making it impossible for the artist's camera to capture this precise scene.

Although Estes' name is synonymous with "photorealism," the artist explained, "It's all a lie. I always like to think that the paintings look very realistic, but the subjects don't actually exist in this way. Everything is constantly changing. There is no such thing as a realistic painting. It's a selection, taking a few elements of reality of the visual elements—never mind the noise, the smell, the actual dimensions." [1] Richard Estes' The M7 to Harlem exemplifies his ability to manipulate compositions captured by his camera, skillfully playing with perspective to achieve a painting that faithfully represents his unique vision of the city.

Estes' fusion of the urban landscape with his distinct brand of realism establishes him as a counterpart to Edward Hopper, the renowned painter of New York nocturnes. Esteemed art historian John Wilmerding notes, "[Estes] and Hopper will understandably make an ongoing comparison as the two great painters of New York. For all the admiration Estes shows toward his predecessor in his painting, there are revealing differences. Even in its moments of alienation, Hopper's New York is more social and psychological, Estes' more metaphysical. And to be more provocative: Hopper may have left us with better known and memorable single works, repeatedly exhibited and reproduced in the literature, but Estes is the better painter in the sheer practice of his craft." [2]

[1] Richard Estes, cited in John Perreault, "Richard Estes," in Louis K. Meisel, Richard Estes: The Complete Painting 1966-1985, New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1986, p. 35.

[2] John Wilmerding, Richard Estes, New York: Rizzoli, 2006, p. 223