Rising fog 

Curator: The drama! It feels as if I’m looking at a volcanic eruption, the shades of gray fighting for dominance. Editor: Well, it’s definitely dramatic. I’m struck by the ephemerality of it all—the charcoal and graphite on paper feel so fragile in contrast to the imposing subject matter. Curator: We're looking at a drawing called "Rising Fog" by Richard Biringer, currently held at the Städel Museum. Biringer has really captured a moment of transformation. The fog, rendered in sweeping charcoal strokes, obscures and reveals in equal measure. It speaks to the transience of vision, a reminder that our perception is always shifting. Editor: And it echoes Romantic anxieties about the sublime power of nature, doesn't it? We see the smallness of human endeavor confronted by an overwhelming, unstoppable force. The fog, a kind of natural erasure, seems to threaten the very idea of fixed perspective, or maybe it re-conceives human insignificance under the eye of God, especially during a period of landscape paintings? Curator: Precisely! Think of fog as a veil, and veil in paintings—cultural symbol that conceal or reveal deeper truths. What do we hide? How does landscape art reveal, expose hidden or forgotten meanings and values that were always present and will return in time? The light itself seems to be struggling to break through, which gives me hope—the paper shines brightly! Editor: The artist's choice of media heightens this sense of impermanence, of course. Graphite and charcoal allow for a kind of soft blending and smudging that oil paint simply can't achieve in the same way. Curator: The tonal range is also quite stunning. The darkest passages carry the weight of unspoken burdens and sorrows, balanced by these areas of pure, unadulterated paper which offers this subtle moment of illumination. I wonder whether "rising fog" reflects a personal moment for Biringer during a transformative point of his life. The drawing may not be dated, however. Editor: Absolutely, that visual dichotomy allows for the suggestion of complex power dynamics within the image: the heaviness of reality countered by the fragile persistence of hope and endurance. Curator: Well, contemplating these emotional nuances with its raw simplicity is what brings "Rising Fog" to life and I see beyond charcoal, graphite and paper. Editor: Agreed. This is more than a drawing; it's a visual poem on the delicate balance between destruction and creation. It makes us think critically about art, history, but most of all, humanity.