Dulcigno (from Sketchbook) 1904

Mary Newbold Sargent sketched "Dulcigno" with graphite on paper, probably en plein air, and I just love to imagine her in that moment, trying to capture the light. What strikes me is how she coaxes the form of the city from a flurry of marks. Look at the base of the city walls, where the sharp, angular lines abruptly give way to soft, smudged shadows, like the whole thing is dissolving even as she draws it. There’s a real push and pull between detail and abstraction. It's like she's building the city in front of our eyes, one stroke at a time. It reminds me of the early watercolors of Cezanne, that same interest in structure, but with a sensitivity to the fleeting effects of light and atmosphere. It’s this combination that makes the drawing so dynamic. Artmaking is a constant conversation, isn't it? A dialogue with the past, but always open to new interpretations.