Calafons à Minorque 1927

Pierre Daura made this print of Calafons in Minorque, and what strikes me is how a few simple lines can conjure a whole world. It's like Daura is thinking out loud with his pencil, and we get to eavesdrop. Look at the way the mountains in the background are built up with these short, hatched lines. It’s almost like he’s knitting the landscape together. You can feel the texture, the slight roughness of the paper, and the way the pencil catches on it. Then, notice the boats in the foreground, so dark, like silhouettes. Those masts, they kind of remind me of Giacometti’s sculptures, all skinny and reaching for something. This piece feels both intimate and expansive. It’s like Daura is saying, hey, art isn’t about perfection, it’s about process, about finding your way through the world, one line at a time. Like with Morandi, it is the focus on one space and subject that makes the rendering so impressive. You can really see how the same subject matter continued to inspire the artist.