Acro-Corinth from Corinth 1913

Joseph Pennell made this etching, Acro-Corinth from Corinth, with ink on paper, sometime before 1926. The surface is full of tiny, nervous marks, like the frantic scribbles of a very focused person. It makes me think about the sheer labor involved, the hours spent coaxing an image out of a plate. Look how the hatching varies, sometimes dense and dark, sometimes sparse and light, creating the illusion of form and shadow. See the way Pennell renders the massive columns in the foreground, so solid and weighty, and compare this to the wispy, almost ethereal quality of the clouds overhead. The contrast gives the piece a real dynamism. The way the light catches the ruins, makes me think of Piranesi, who was obsessed with ancient Roman architecture. This piece reminds me that art isn't about perfect representation. It's about the artist's hand, their unique way of seeing and interpreting the world. It's about the conversation that stretches across time, each artist riffing on what came before.