Barn Near Mannheim, Pennsylvania 1938

J. J. Lankes made this wood engraving, *Barn Near Mannheim, Pennsylvania*, using careful cuts and considered marks. Look at how the hatching makes the sky almost oppressive in the top right corner. It's a real skill, this idea of building form, volume and atmosphere with a few simple marks. The barn itself sits on a small rise, a slight mound, and is viewed straight on, almost like a portrait. See how Lankes uses the texture of the marks to give a feeling of place. These marks build up a sensation of light, and air, and weather; all the elements of being somewhere. I think in terms of the sensibility of someone like Agnes Martin, the way she conjures a world from next to nothing. It has a quiet, rural, slightly melancholic feel. It’s a simple, unpretentious view. It’s interesting, this idea of ordinary things rendered extraordinary through attention and care.