Whirlwinds, Dead Mountains, Mojave Desert, California c. 1921

George Elbert Burr made this etching of the Mojave Desert sometime in the early 20th century using delicate lines to capture a landscape alive with movement. Look at those whirlwinds, rising like ghostly dancers. I can almost feel the dry desert air and the heat shimmering off the sand. I imagine Burr out there in the blazing sun, squinting as he sketches, trying to capture the way the light plays across the mountains. The scene feels both desolate and full of energy. Even the mountains seem to be breathing. The landscape reminds me of Agnes Martin's subtle, quiet paintings of the American Southwest – a similar sense of vast space, an echo of silence. You know, artists are always looking at each other, borrowing and riffing off ideas across time. Burr's etching, like Martin’s paintings, invites you to slow down, to really see the world, and maybe, to feel a little bit of that desert magic.