Via San Vitale, Bologna 1904

This is Donald Shaw MacLaughlan’s "Via San Vitale, Bologna," an etching made sometime in the early 20th century. MacLaughlan has this incredible way of using line to create volume and atmosphere. Look at the dark, dense hatching on the building to the right. The lines are so close together, it almost feels like a solid mass, and yet, there’s a real sense of depth and air. The lines define form, but they also make the light seem to vibrate. Then, see how he contrasts that with the sparser, more delicate lines on the building to the left? It’s like he’s playing with positive and negative space. A really interesting push and pull between detail and absence. It reminds me a little of Piranesi, that slightly claustrophobic feeling. Both artists use the etching process to create these incredible architectural fantasies. They show us that, sometimes, the real world is strange and dreamlike enough.