On North Dvine.6 Postcard 1902

Igor Grabar made this postcard, "On North Dvine.6," capturing a row of rustic windmills. He’s got a great eye for pattern and a lovely way of creating depth in the picture plane using flat shapes. The drawing is really about line. The windmills are rendered with quick, descriptive strokes, giving them a quirky, almost cartoonish quality. The texture of the wooden structures is evoked with parallel lines, suggesting both form and decay. Look at the way the sky is this pale, washy blue, contrasting with the earthy tones of the windmills. Grabar's got this way of making something very specific and local, feel like it could be anywhere, or any time. It’s a feeling you also get with some of the early modernists like, say, a Morandi, with his dusty bottles. Both artists create this sense of timelessness through simple, repetitive forms and a muted palette. It reminds me that art is always a conversation, echoing across time and place.