Silent Monumentalism - Stones/Glass (Construction Study)
Pieter Lategan 2026
Modimolle South Africa
Silent Monumentalism — Structural Study (Sketchbook, 2026)
Pieter Lategan
In this sketch I started to think in structure rather than detail.
The focus shifts from drawing many elements to constructing a few large planes in space.
This is important for the discipline, because the work must hold through structure and not through description.
There are still too many lines.
The lines repeat and do not clearly begin or end.
This makes the drawing feel uncertain and searching.
Because the forms are not clearly closed, the image becomes slightly narrative.
It starts to describe rather than stand.
This is important to recognise.
The drawing must move toward:
• fewer lines
• clearer edges
• closed forms
• defined planes
The blocks must become larger.
More space must be left empty.
Simplicity is essential.
Three-dimensional form does not need complexity.
Simple planes are enough for the work to hold.
Discipline:
This work belongs to Silent Monumentalism.
It is based on:
structure
mass
space
relation
If too many lines or details are added, the work shifts into:
• narrative
• emotion
• illustration
This must be avoided.
The structure must come first.
Everything else is secondary.
Pieter Lategan
March 2026
Pretoria, South Africa
Silent Monumentalism — Reduced Structure Study (Sketchbook, 2026)
Pieter Lategan
In this sketch I reduced the objects and used fewer lines.
I focused on the main structure and not on detail.
The lines are more controlled and the forms are more clear and closed.
The sketch starts to hold better in space.
There is more empty space and less noise.
This is closer to my discipline of Silent Monumentalism, where the work is about structure and not about story or detail.
