Dawn in the Land of the Buttes c. 1920

George Elbert Burr made this etching, Dawn in the Land of the Buttes, we don't know exactly when, but it’s a dreamy exploration of line and tone. Look at how the buttes emerge from the landscape with such delicate precision. It’s all about process, isn’t it? The texture here is everything. The way the light catches the paper, the subtle variations in the etched lines, it's almost like a whisper. See how the artist used hatching and cross-hatching to create depth, giving the buttes a real sense of volume? The desert scrub in the foreground is like a little symphony of marks, each one distinct, yet working together to create a sense of place. Burr reminds me a little of Agnes Martin, in the way he finds vastness in the simplest of forms. There’s something so meditative about this piece, a real sense of quiet contemplation. Art isn't about answers, it's about embracing the questions.