Tabloid 1938

Paul F. Berdanier made this etching, Tabloid, sometime in the mid-20th century using, I imagine, acid, metal, and a printing press. It depicts a chaotic scene in a newspaper office. Look at this jumble of figures and objects, all rendered with such intricate lines and details. The artist seems to revel in the act of capturing the frenetic energy of the newsroom—the skeletal figure looming over the shoulder of the working man, the pile of laundry, the pages upon pages of newsprint, the discarded eye glasses. I imagine Berdanier, cigarette in mouth, hunched over the metal plate, scratching away to capture the energy of the newspaper business. The way he’s layered the image, pushing the boundaries of legibility, makes me think of Hogarth. Ultimately, it makes me reflect on how artists use their specific mediums and subject matter to comment on life. Each of these scenes are testaments to the enduring power of art to provoke thought, emotion, and conversation across generations.