Michigan Avenue from Park Row in the Year 1865 c. 1926

Raoul Varin's 'Michigan Avenue from Park Row in the Year 1865' at the Art Institute of Chicago, feels like looking into a sepia-toned dream of a city's past. I can only imagine the layers of decisions and the sheer amount of work required to create a print like this. The muted palette gives it this otherworldly quality, as if the scene exists in a memory rather than reality. What was it like to try and represent a moment in time like this? I picture Varin sketching outdoors and then going back to the studio. The way the trees are depicted—sort of feathery and light—gives you a real sense of atmosphere, as if the wind might start blowing at any moment. It makes me think of how much is involved in looking, seeing, and representing an image as it flits into being. It's like Varin is in conversation with all those who came before him, but also inviting those who come after into that same dialogue. The material rendering invites us to meditate on our present and future.