Town Hall Steps 1929

Kenneth Holmes made this etching, "Town Hall Steps," and you can see how his process embraces a kind of organized chaos. It’s all in the details here. See how the tiny lines swarm together, creating a buzzing energy across the whole plate? Look closely at the figures; they're not just standing, they're vibrating with life, rendered with an almost frenetic energy. There's a tension here between control and letting go. You see the detail in the architecture, then the loose scribbles bringing the crowd to life. It reminds me a bit of Piranesi, who also loved to build worlds from tiny marks, embracing the layering of detail. It makes you wonder about how much control an artist really has, and how much you have to just let the process take over.