Liberators 1943

Alexandre Hogue made this print, Liberators, in 1945. It’s all graphite on paper, a dance of grays, from the planes to the clouds to the flag. I’m really struck by the way that the graphite gives the work a tactile quality, like you could almost feel the texture of the flag rippling in the wind. Look at the upper right corner, how the dark hatching of the flag contrasts with the white dove. It reminds me of the push and pull of making art; the way one mark can change everything. Hogue uses these marks to create an emotional resonance. It’s like he’s asking, “What does it mean to be a liberator?” It reminds me of Leon Golub's work with its engagement with conflict, and the tension between representation and abstraction. In the end, the best art lives in the questions, not the answers.