Hallway at Dr. Wister's 1912

Joseph Pennell made this drawing called "Hallway at Dr. Wister's," sometime around 1912, using what looks like graphite on paper. The first thing I see is how the marks build up to make the space, there are so many lines and the marks all seem to follow the shape of things. The archway is so grand and heavy. It feels like a stage set. Pennell uses these tight hatched lines to build up the shadows around the pillars and the ceiling. It gives the whole drawing a sort of moody atmosphere. But then, the rest of the drawing is so much lighter, with just a few lines here and there to suggest the furniture and the figures, I think they're figures. Look at that chair, how quickly it's described, and the floorboards that rush into the picture. This makes me think of Whistler, another printmaker, and how they both find the perfect balance between detail and suggestion. They create these worlds that invite us to fill in the blanks and imagine the rest.