Each Moment Has Its Sickle n.d.

Charles Reuben Ryley rendered this drawing, Each Moment Has Its Sickle, with pen and gray ink and gray wash over graphite, on moderately textured paper. The composition is sharply divided between the dark lines of the grieving man and the solemn procession in the background. The man's posture, with his extended arm, implies a dialogue with the void, while the procession, rendered in somber tones, emphasizes the finality of death. In the tradition of eighteenth-century aesthetics, Ryley employs a visual language that merges form with philosophical inquiry, using the visual structure to prompt contemplation on mortality. Each stroke, each carefully placed shadow, acts as a signifier, inviting us to decode the deeper meanings of life and loss. It is in this delicate balance between representation and abstraction that the drawing achieves its aesthetic and philosophical impact.