The Cloisters

Provenance:
Paper Type: Hosho student grade;
                       DeLuxe edition on paper made by the artist
Paper Size: 9.125" x 11.25"
                       DeLuxe edition 8.5" x 11"
Image Size: 4" x 5.5"
Edition Size: 15; Deluxe V
Date: 2006-04-15
Inks Used Van Son Rubber-based inks

   On August 4th, 2005 I visited the Cloisters with my daughter. We were thoroughly captivated by this piece of Europe transplanted onto the shores of America, a bit of architecture far older than any other on the well-built up terrain of Manhattan. The Saint-Guilhem Cloister, late 12th century, was covered with a glass roof and the light from the early afternoon sun coming through the beams was quite interesting. The impermanent sun's passage across the sky as it illuminated first one ancient column then another and marked its progress against the timeless archways was like a kind of architectural sundial. The time scale it measured has vanished with the centuries, and now we measure time with digital integers in fractions of a second instead of columns standing for morning, noon, and evening.
   I wanted to linger there, watching the patterns of light, the slow migration into all the recesses of the cloister. Intrusions of visitors as they rushed through the hall as if on a high speed treasure hunt seemed like whisps of impermanent smoke, barely ruffling the calm and contemplation of the overarched space. At length, however, we too joined in the search for culture and abandoned the serenity of the cloister. Within hours we were engulfed by the subway with its a singsong accompaniment, "Stand Clear of the Closing Doors, Please." As I was whisked away, I preserved a piece of the quiet in a  corner of my spirit where it has stayed to nurture me whenever I recall the moment.
   This print is dedicated to my daughter, Erin B. Webb.