Carved Wooden Door c. 1936

Curator: This is "Carved Wooden Door," an architectural drawing completed around 1936. Editor: Wow, it's just a door, but those details! It’s calling me back to some place both real and imagined; maybe a stage set, all poised and waiting for a grand entrance, or a dramatic exit. I am curious: is this just a drawing, or the rendering of a completed door? Curator: Excellent question. From what we understand, it appears to be a preparatory study—a blueprint, in effect. You can see the detailed measurements scribed to its perimeter and a high degree of detail suggesting it would have been used to commission or fabricate this very ornate set of wooden doors. It shows how critical drawings like these are in the creation and reception of architecture. Editor: So, the real doors might not even exist now, lost in a fire, torn down during renovations or is maybe installed and swinging somewhere adding drama to the entrance of its charmed and sheltered owner! It's funny, isn’t it? The ephemeral and contingent nature of actual structures compared to the permanence that can be achieved through representational practices. That makes this drawing even more powerful; this line on the page exists potentially more permanently than a gigantic cathedral somewhere in Europe! Curator: I think that's a fair assessment. The drawing now functions as both an historical record and also becomes art. Notice how the drawing’s style and meticulous craftsmanship elevate this to a sort of ideal. It presents viewers, even now, with ideas of stability, permanence, even aspiration… a bit grand, don't you think? Editor: Not grand, but full of potential. A door promises you entry to some unknown realm of secrets and adventure or maybe safety and a warm meal. Maybe the carving reminds me that art is an act of opening new possibilities and maybe the idea is more appealing than what’s actually behind any old wooden door. Curator: That’s beautifully put. It highlights the important public role of art beyond pure aesthetics; more like symbolic entry points for dialogue and inquiry, and as markers that give the idea of structure shape in the landscape. Editor: Exactly. So much from what seems at first glance so simple! I wonder, could it maybe swing both ways and what kind of sound it will make when doing so. Curator: Indeed. It does seem to embody both function and potential... Editor: Absolutely. A frozen drawing can unlock very active, deeply intimate parts of our imagination, if you give it half a chance!