Flume Ascent, Franconia, New Hampshire; verso: Flume at Franconia, New Hampshire 25 - 1871

Editor: Here we have William Rimmer's sketch, "Flume Ascent, Franconia, New Hampshire." It's just pencil on paper, very intimate in scale, almost like a whisper of a place. What first strikes you about this drawing? Curator: It feels like a dream, doesn't it? A memory half-formed. Rimmer captures the essence of the Flume, not with photorealism, but with an almost ethereal quality. The stark lines and shading evokes a feeling of being swallowed by nature's immensity. Have you ever felt like that, completely dwarfed? Editor: Absolutely! The scale makes me feel like I'm about to be enveloped by the landscape. What do you think Rimmer was trying to communicate with this piece? Curator: Perhaps the sublime. He's not just drawing a landscape; he's hinting at nature's power to overwhelm, inspire, and maybe even frighten us. It's a raw, honest portrayal of our relationship with the natural world. Editor: I see that now, that sense of awe, a little bit fearful but also beautiful. Curator: Exactly. And that, my friend, is the magic of Rimmer.