Ruïnes van het kasteel van Les Baux 1920

Philip Zilcken made this etching of the Ruïnes van het kasteel van Les Baux, sometime between about 1870 and 1930. The whole thing feels like it’s about mark-making, or maybe even about the absence of marks. He’s using a bare minimum of lines to suggest this formidable structure. The lines aren’t labored over, each one feels like it was made with the confidence of someone who is very comfortable with their tools. Look how the marks on the rock in the foreground are a little bit scratchier. It feels dry and arid and brittle. Then move your eye up to the building; it’s much more orderly and rigid, but still crumbling. I like how he’s playing with the texture and surface. It brings out a certain emotion, maybe a sense of melancholy, thinking about time passing and the decay of even the most powerful structures. This reminds me of some drawings by Piranesi; Zilcken maybe looked at his work. But ultimately art isn’t about answers; it’s about opening up more questions.