The Quadrangle, Bart's Hospital 1938

William Walcot made this etching, The Quadrangle, Bart's Hospital, sometime in the early 20th century. Look at all of those sketchy, scratchy lines! For me, it's about the energy and rhythm of mark-making. Walcot layers lines to build up a sense of space and texture. The ink is light, almost like a pencil drawing, but the etched lines have a subtle bite, catching the light and creating a slightly raised surface. You can almost feel the burr of the etching needle as it moved across the plate. See how the lines thicken and cluster to suggest the dark depths of the trees, then thin out to describe the buildings? It's all about suggestion and atmosphere. This piece reminds me a bit of Piranesi's architectural etchings, though Walcot's touch is lighter, more impressionistic. It’s all about seeing the world in a new way, not as a fixed, static thing, but as a collection of fleeting impressions, open to endless interpretations.