
The barn represented in this drawing is repeatedly used by Wolf Kahn to study the interaction of color, light, and form. Like many of his contemporaries, Kahn worked en plein air, examining the structure from different angles, scales, and times of day to discover its varied meanings, much like Claude Monet did in his famous images of haystacks. When this drawing is viewed with other depictions of the barn, it is possible not only to reconstruct the building in the round, but also to understand Kahn’s perceptions of his surroundings and the different methods he used to explore them.

Bowl with Large Diamond-Shaped Area Interior with Dotted Lines and Diamonds, and Interlocking Stepped Motifs
Ancestral Pueblo (Anasazi), possibly St. John's Black-on-white West-central New Mexico, United States

Dipper or Ladle with Interlocking Zigzag and Step-Fret Designs
Ancestral Pueblo (Anasazi), Black-on-white West-central New Mexico, United States

Bowl with Textured Surface Decoration
Possibly Ancestral Pueblo (Anasazi) Southwest, United States