Lüftung des Meeres für Herrn Camaro 2019

Lech Jankowski made this pencil drawing titled Lüftung des Meeres für Herrn Camaro, or Ventilation of the Sea for Mr. Camaro, maybe recently, as the date on the image suggests 2018. The way the pencil moves, back and forth, not lifting off the page, makes me think of how a wave moves, endlessly coming and going. The lower portion of the drawing has a darker concentration of marks, which creates a rhythm with the lighter, more softly rendered areas above. See how the repeated lines almost resemble the movement of tides, or maybe soundwaves? There’s something about the texture, the build-up of graphite, that feels both dense and ethereal at the same time. It makes me think of Vija Celmins' meticulous drawings, where she recreates images of the ocean's surface with incredible detail. Both artists invite us to consider the ocean as a space of constant change and flux. Jankowski's drawing is an invitation to contemplate the unseen forces that shape our world, and to find beauty in the ambiguity of art.