Rocky Landscape (Cape Flattery) (from Sketchbook X) 1885

Curator: Well, this looks like a rather hasty vision! A quick study. Editor: It is, in a way. This double-page drawing in graphite and pencil gives us a glimpse into the plein-air practices of William Trost Richards. It’s titled "Rocky Landscape (Cape Flattery)," from his Sketchbook X, dating back to 1885. You can find it on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Curator: The Hudson River School vibe is strong here, wouldn't you say? Although a much quieter version. It almost feels... tentative? Editor: Indeed! Richards, though associated with the Hudson River School, brought his unique precision to landscape drawing. The pencil lines are delicate, aren't they? I can almost feel the ocean breeze against those rugged cliffs! And I love how little he uses...the sparest minimum possible. Curator: Look at those mountains in the background, barely there... mere suggestions. What do they represent, beyond the purely topographical? Does it have to be a representation of nature? Why make it almost invisible? Editor: Perhaps those mountains symbolize the eternal, the unchanging backdrop against which human dramas unfold. What appears fleeting has roots in what has already occured! And speaking of nature... I wonder if it represents Richards' yearning to fully merge with it, to lose himself in its vastness? And to then... recreate this. Curator: Ah, interesting interpretation. Perhaps. Or maybe, more simply, he was trying to capture a moment, a fleeting impression of light on the land. A whisper of a vision, quickly captured on paper... before the mists rolled in. Editor: Maybe. Whatever the reason, there's a haunting, almost ephemeral quality to it. A subtle masterpiece. I can almost feel Richards standing there... overlooking the landscape. It resonates as both document and dream. Curator: It does linger in the mind. A quiet invitation to reflect on our own fleeting perceptions of the world.