The Bronx 1902

Oscar Bluemner made this drawing of The Bronx with graphite on paper. It’s June 21st, 1902. What was Bluemner thinking as he built up the tonal layers to describe the scene? I feel like he may have been interested in what he saw, but maybe he felt a little disconnected. He seems more interested in the formal arrangements than the details. The scene is composed with short hatched strokes which add up to a kind of blurry haze. There’s something unresolved about the composition, but at the same time, the work is so complete. It has this quiet, understated vibe. It seems as though Bluemner is conversing with other landscape artists like Constable or Corot, who were investigating how to represent light and atmosphere through painting. What can be said about the world with just a few marks?