NY from Dyckman St., Ferry Hill, No. 2 c. 1924

This is John Marin's "NY from Dyckman St., Ferry Hill, No. 2," a drawing created with graphite on paper. The sketch offers a landscape viewed through a network of lines that carve out shapes and suggest depth. Marin plays with perspective and form to evoke the dynamism of New York. The composition pulses with energy, achieved through a constellation of lines, hatching, and erasure, which destabilize any fixed point of view. Marin's mark-making moves between abstraction and representation, creating a sense of space and atmosphere that reflects the modern experience of urban life. Consider how Marin’s interest in architecture and geometric abstraction relates to broader artistic concerns of his time. Cubism, with its fracturing of form, and Futurism, with its emphasis on speed and motion, share an affinity with the artist's desire to capture the sensory overload of the modern metropolis. Through this drawing, Marin challenges established notions of landscape art and invites us to participate in a new visual language.