From "the invisible cities" by Italo Calvino, Chapter: "the thin cities 5"
THIN CITIES 5
If you choose to believe me, good. Now I will tell how Octavia, the
spiderweb city, is made.
There is a precipice between two steep mountains: the
city is over the void, bound to the two crests with ropes and chains and
catwalks. You walk on the little wooden ties, careful not to set your foot in
the open spaces, or you cling to the hempen strands. Below there is nothing for
hundreds and hundreds of feet: a few clouds glide past; farther down you can
glimpse the chasm's bed.
This is the foundation of the city: a net which serves
as passage and as support. All the rest, instead of rising up, is hung below:
rope-ladders, hammocks, houses made like sacks, clothes-hangers, terraces like
gondolas, skins of water, gas jets, spits, baskets on strings, dumb-waiters,
showers, trapezes and rings for children's games, cable-cars, chandeliers, pots
with trailing plants.
Suspended over the abyss, the life of Octavia's
inhabitants is less uncertain than in other cities. They know the net will last
only so long.
2 comments:
This is a good illustration. The central figure is well-drawn; the apparatus holding him looks believable; the background gives just the amount of detail to describe the hanging city; and the cross-hatching and tones are well-done. You must have really enjoyed doing this ink drawing.
You make me blush with so much praise. Yes, I really enjoyed drawing this one.
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