The Door, St. Bartholomew's 1909

Charles Frederick William Mielatz made "The Door, St. Bartholomew's" using etching. I can almost hear the scratching sound of the needle on the plate, a kind of slow, deliberate dance. Looking at this print, I wonder what it was like for Mielatz to stand before this door, translating its massive presence into delicate lines. Did he feel dwarfed by the architecture, or empowered by the act of recreating it? I love how the warm pinks of the brick contrast with the cool greens of the doors, it makes the whole thing vibrate, like the building itself is breathing. The reflections in the water are like a whispered echo, blurring the line between reality and representation. The way that Mielatz lets the architecture dissolve at the base makes me think about the impermanence of things, even the most solid structures.