Gezicht op Sutter Street in San Francisco c. 1915 - 1919

Willem Witsen made this etching of Sutter Street in San Francisco, but when, I don't know. It's like he's composing a delicate melody with line, isn't it? The surface is a dance of marks, a sort of visual whisper of buildings and foliage. I imagine Witsen, squinting in the California sun, carefully choosing each line. What was he thinking? Maybe he felt a kinship with those buildings, with the way they stand, observing the world around them. The density of the ink varies, creating shadows and depth. Notice how the lines create a sense of volume and weight, like he's sculpting with ink. It puts me in mind of Whistler and his atmospheric prints of London. There's a similar feeling of fleeting impressions, of capturing a moment in time. Artists are always looking, always riffing off each other, aren't they?