Gezicht op steile rotswanden aan zee before 1903

Here's my take: This image by John Cimon Warburg presents us with a rendering of steep cliffs by the sea, reproduced here in grayscale. What interests me is that it is not necessarily the scene itself, but the process which captures our attention. There's a real sense of tonal awareness in how the cliffs are depicted, the artist has carefully considered how light falls upon the forms. The lack of colour information encourages us to notice other aspects of the image, the light areas and textures. Look closer to the lower portion of the cliffs, here we see the artist has layered differing tones and textures, creating a sense of organic depth and layering, it is easy to imagine a number of thin glazes being added one after the other. This is very much like the work of Gerhard Richter, who often obscures his painting through the addition of thin layers of paint. Ultimately this piece shows us how art is about seeing and process, not necessarily a specific image.