"We're Bound for Rio Grande" 1929

Arthur Briscoe made this etching, "We're Bound for Rio Grande," probably in the early twentieth century. Just look at the dark, sinuous lines that map out the rigging and sails! You can almost feel the ship rocking and the wind whipping. I imagine Briscoe, squinting against the sun, trying to capture the precise angle of the mast. The sailors are like dark smudges, bent over their work; the light seems to dissolve them. Those etched lines are so precise. They remind me of the drawings of other painters, like Van Gogh, who used mark-making to create a sense of movement and energy. There's something so satisfying about the way Briscoe used line to describe the scene. It is like he's inviting us to climb aboard and feel the freedom of the open sea. I wonder if Turner ever saw Briscoe's work; they both seem obsessed with capturing the raw energy of the water. It's like a conversation across time, each artist pushing the boundaries of how we see and feel the world through art.