PA 17 (Port Authority Bus Terminal) 1982

Ronald Bladen made this drawing of the Port Authority Bus Terminal with graphite on paper. The composition feels like the first impression of a scene, quickly, intuitively captured. Look at the angles of the lines, the lightness of the touch, the rapid, iterative process of drawing, erasing, and redrawing. I wonder what it was like for Bladen to be an artist in New York, to make a study of the Port Authority? There is an openness in the composition, the white paper providing a spaciousness around the architectural forms. It’s all so tentative! The barest of marks suggest depth, volume, and perspective. The linear perspective of the broad strokes in the foreground pulls your eye into the image. I’m reminded of the drawings of Sol LeWitt and the sculptures of Donald Judd. Artists are in an ongoing conversation, inspiring one another, and expanding the possibilities of seeing and thinking.