Went into the National Gallery of Art today, and saw a couple of shows. This one, "Charles Sheeler: Across Media," explores how Sheeler used the mediums of photography, film, painting, and drawing to explore his ideas. The way in which the work done in one medium influenced and supported work in the other mediums is the essence of the exhibition.
In the images presented here, you see a photo self-portrait of Sheeler before a drawing in his studio and the same pose in the painting entitled "The Artist Looks at Nature." Curiously the drawing, that of a pot-belly stove in a farmhouse interior, is the same in both works. Sheeler enjoyed working with geometric forms and often chose buildings, industrial sites, and man made objects as subjects. And even here you can see how important the retaining wall is to the composition.
One thought that came to me as I studied this work was the similarity in palettes and technique between Sheeler and my beloved Rockwell Kent. In particular, the way in which the shadow of the retaining wall is painted so that it almost appears to be giving off a light of it's own. Kent also does this, most notably in his arctic paintings of Greenland.
It's a small show, easily done in an hour with plenty of time for contemplation. A great way to cool off on a hot and humid August afternoon.
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