Logan Monument 1912

Bror Julius Olsson Nordfeldt created this etching, titled *Logan Monument*, using black ink on cream laid paper. The print depicts the bustling city of Chicago, where smoke billows from trains below a skyline punctuated by a large monument. The composition is dominated by vertical lines of the buildings and the ascending plumes of smoke. This visual rhythm is counterbalanced by the horizontal lines of the train tracks and the low hill upon which the Logan Monument sits. The texture is achieved through the etching technique, where fine lines create a sense of depth and atmosphere. The contrast between the solid structures and the ephemeral smoke introduces a dialogue between permanence and transience, which is a crucial tension in modern urban life. Nordfeldt uses these structural contrasts to not only depict a scene, but also to comment on the evolving identity of the city.