Solon H. Borglum, born Ogden, UT - Cathedral Study - 1919 - T-Shirt

A graphite pencil study on cream paper, built around a tall Gothic tower that rises along the right side of the sheet.

Visual Elements & Composition

The page is dominated by warm cream, with graphite grey lines and light tan tonal areas doing the work. The tower narrows toward a finial at the top and carries two tall lancet-arched openings in its middle section, with pinnacles and small projecting elements below. A horizontal ledge crosses its lower part. In the lower centre, a heavily shaded curved arch sweeps down and to the left, its dark round opening standing out against the open paper. Faint, loosely hatched forms and a dark tonal mass sit along the left edge, and handwritten notes appear in the right and lower right margins.

Meaning & Symbolism

The composition sets the upward thrust of the tower against the heavier, enclosing curve below. The tall lancets and pinnacles speak to the Gothic cathedral's emphasis on height and light, while the curved stone at the base reads as the threshold that anchors that height. Solon Hannibal Borglum (1868–1922), born in Ogden, Utah, was an American sculptor and the brother of Gutzon Borglum. He trained in Paris and became known mainly for animal and frontier subjects in bronze, so architectural drawings like this one form a smaller, more private part of his work. Faint erased lines around the tower show the view being adjusted as the drawing developed.

Study in Upward Lines

This artwork is a study, and a tee suits it: the tower and arch stay fully visible across the chest, with the open cream ground giving the drawing room to breathe. The verticality of the tower runs naturally with the body of the shirt, while the shaded arch settles lower, where the eye lands last. Wear it as a reminder that a good architectural study begins with a few careful, searching lines.