Waterworks in Haslan (from Sketchbook) 1834 - 1838

Curator: John William Casilear’s “Waterworks in Haslan (from Sketchbook)” drawn between 1834 and 1838. It's a humble ink and graphite sketch currently residing here at the Met. Editor: Humble is right! It looks like a whispered secret of a town. So faint and delicate, almost as if the paper could exhale, and the image would simply float away. Curator: That ephemeral quality speaks to its creation within a sketchbook. Casilear was capturing a transient moment, perhaps for a larger studio work later on, adhering to the Romanticism of the period by focusing on the beauty of nature and simple architectural scenes. Editor: You know, the interesting thing is how these lines, barely there, can still suggest such solid structures. A church tower, a blocky building... It's the power of suggestion at play. I'm always drawn to pieces that don't give it all away. Curator: And that openness invites the viewer in. Look how Casilear employs a seemingly simple line style to delineate space and volume. There's an inherent sense of depth despite the economy of detail. He’s very careful to consider the negative space, allowing it to describe forms just as clearly as the ink does. Editor: Right, the negative space becomes almost architectural in its own right! Makes you consider what isn't depicted, too. What's the story here? Who inhabits these buildings? What are they doing? The ambiguity turns me into a bit of a detective, or a novelist crafting backstories, I suppose! Curator: He does offer us these hushed and gentle, nearly empty spaces in order to evoke this type of curiosity and contemplation, and these scenes of pastoral charm catered to a rising merchant class eager to establish its cultural legitimacy through the appreciation and patronage of landscapes like these. The Romantics weren't just drawing pretty pictures; they were also helping to create a specific cultural identity. Editor: Well, color me charmed, but also quietly contemplative. I could get lost in the lightness of touch and still come away wondering what secrets this little village holds, even after all this time. Curator: Exactly. A deceptively simple piece holding profound reflections on art, identity, and society during its era. A wonderful conversation starter, isn't it?