View of Chicago 1925

Editor: This pencil sketch, titled "View of Chicago" by Helmut von Erffa, feels so raw and immediate. The buildings are just hinted at. What do you see in this piece? Curator: The skyscrapers, though lightly sketched, evoke a potent symbolism. Do you feel a sense of aspiration, perhaps even a touch of anxiety, in their upward thrust? They echo the Tower of Babel myth, a testament to human ambition but also hubris. Editor: I hadn't thought about the Tower of Babel! Now I see how that story is embedded in the image. Curator: Exactly. The sketch's incompleteness becomes part of its meaning. It's not just a view of Chicago, but a reflection on the ongoing project of building civilizations and their inherent contradictions. Editor: That's fascinating. Thanks for pointing out the symbolic weight within such a simple sketch! Curator: My pleasure! It's in these subtle gestures that art often speaks loudest.