The Rhine, below St. Goar c. 1915

George Elbert Burr made this print, Rhine, below St. Goar, using a technique called etching. It's all about lines, isn't it? See how they build up to make the sky feel heavy and full of weather. I love how the ink sits on the paper, kind of grainy and soft. It gives the whole scene a hazy, dreamlike quality. The marks are so delicate, but together they create this really powerful sense of place. I'm especially drawn to the way the lines curve and swirl in the clouds. It's like Burr is letting us in on his own experience of watching the sky. This reminds me a bit of some of Whistler's etchings, that same love for atmosphere and mood. Art’s just one big conversation across time, right? It makes you think about how artists are always borrowing and responding to each other, and about how there's no right way to see any of this!