Two Composition Studies c. 1940s

Ralston Crawford made these two composition studies in May 1954 with ink on paper. I imagine him sketching with the pen held loosely in his hand. It's interesting to see these two attempts side by side – like the artist is thinking through a problem, trying to find a solution that satisfies him. There are strong architectural forms, maybe buildings, and these shaded areas with diagonal lines. I can imagine him thinking about light and shadow and how to make the picture plane more dynamic. The lines are precise, but the shapes are mysterious, like an alphabet that hasn’t yet been deciphered. Crawford had a real knack for taking industrial or architectural subjects and turning them into these nearly abstract compositions, which kind of reminds me of some of the stuff Stuart Davis was doing. You can see how artists look to one another to solve problems of representation, building on each other's ideas. It's like they are all in this silent but lively conversation across time.