Mision San Luis Obispo 1935 - 1942

James Jones made this drawing of Mision San Luis Obispo, sometime between 1912 and 1942, probably with graphite on paper. What strikes me first is how the hand-drawn lines and shading, which give the building form, create a tension with the flat geometric shapes. Look at the facade of the building, see how it’s constructed with such precision, with these tiny lines built up to make a tone, almost like a mechanical process, yet there’s nothing mechanical about it. See the subtle imperfections, the way the shadow falls, the wonkiness of the cross. It’s so precise in some ways and yet, in others, so expressive. The bricks above the arches are beautifully rendered in a repeating pattern, and this is broken up by the slight variations and irregularities that show the hand of the artist. You know, this kind of reminds me of Agnes Martin, but with buildings. It’s about the quiet beauty of simple forms. I think art is like that sometimes, an ongoing exchange across time.