Rainy Night, Charing Cross Shops 1903

Joseph Pennell made this etching, Rainy Night, Charing Cross Shops, in 1904, and it's a masterclass in mood. Pennell uses a monochrome palette to evoke the feeling of a rain-soaked evening in London, a city he knew well. The image seems to emerge from the darkness, built up through layers of marks. What I love about this piece is the way Pennell uses the etching technique to capture the ephemeral quality of light on a rainy night. Look closely, and you'll see how the dense network of lines creates a shimmering effect, like raindrops on a window. The reflections on the wet pavement, the hazy glow of the streetlights, even the silhouetted figures with their umbrellas, all contribute to the overall atmosphere of the scene. In the lower left, the downstrokes of rain are like the strokes of a brush. Think of Whistler’s nocturnes, those hazy, dreamlike impressions of the city at night. Pennell was definitely part of that conversation, pushing the boundaries of what printmaking could do. It’s a reminder that art is always in dialogue, with artists responding to and building upon the ideas of those who came before them.