Sky-line, Chicago 1931

Curator: Donald Shaw MacLaughlan, born in 1876, created this print titled "Sky-line, Chicago," now residing at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: It's striking, isn't it? The concentration of vertical lines—it evokes a sense of burgeoning industrial power. Curator: Indeed. Note the skillful use of hatching and cross-hatching to define form and create depth within the architectural masses. MacLaughlan coaxes a range of tonal values from the etched line. Editor: And what about the implications of this urban landscape? We must acknowledge the labor and the socio-economic disparities inherent in such a built environment. Curator: Perhaps, but the formal arrangement is what truly commands attention here. The carefully balanced composition creates a harmonious tension between the individual structures and the unified skyline. Editor: Ultimately, the image provokes questions regarding progress and its consequences—a reflection of early 20th-century urban anxieties. Curator: An astute observation; however, the pure aesthetic experience derived from the artist's mastery of technique cannot be overlooked.