The Broken Mirror 1911

Timothy Cole made this engraving called, "The Broken Mirror," and boy, it’s got a lot of grey! The piece has all these etched lines, like he’s mapping out not just what he sees, but how light sort of clings to surfaces. Look at the woman's dress – it's all these tiny, careful marks, but together they make silk look like it's actually shimmering. The medium is totally part of the message here. It feels both precise and emotional, which is a hard balance to strike. It’s as though the scene is being gently revealed to us. The way he handles that drape in the background reminds me of Whistler, and that whole interest in atmosphere and mood. With Cole, it's not just about what's there but how it feels to be there, caught in this moment. A broken mirror isn't just bad luck, but a break in the picture plane, the thing we're always trying to climb through as artists.