Plate 13 c. 1785

Curator: This is "Plate 13" by Alexander Cozens, currently residing in the Tate Collections. It's a study in ink, almost abstract. Editor: It feels desolate, stark. The dark blots seem almost aggressive against the white space. Like a primal landscape. Curator: Cozens was quite interested in systematic landscape composition. He developed a method of 'blotting,' using ink stains to generate landscape ideas. It’s about harnessing chance in the creative process. Editor: The 'blots' might also represent the sublime in nature. The mountain, a powerful symbol across cultures, dominating the scene, dwarfing any human presence. Curator: Consider the materiality too. The rapid, almost crude application of ink. It emphasizes the immediacy of artistic creation, and challenges traditional notions of skilled artistic labour. Editor: Yet, even these spontaneous marks echo traditional landscape painting, conjuring ideas of journey, solitude, or perhaps the overwhelming power of nature. Curator: A method exploring the intersection of chance and control in artistic production. Quite radical, really. Editor: Ultimately, it leaves a powerful, lasting impression of something both monumental and unknowable.