Rouen Cathedral, the Portal in the Sun

What you see

The façade fills the picture almost to the edges, seen head-on and from very close. Three arched portals open at the bottom, the central one largest. Above it, a pointed gable climbs toward the great rose window, which reads as a dark patch in the middle. At the top, towers and pinnacles stand out against a scrap of blue sky.

The stone has no firm outlines. It is built from layers of thick, crusty paint in whites, creams, ochres and pale blues, as if the light were eating away the details. The portals hold warmer orange tones. Look closely at that rough surface, which feels like real stone, and find the signature in the lower right.