Bar Room Brawl 1939

Paul Keene made this etching, "Bar Room Brawl", in 1939. The monochrome image has a frenetic energy, built up by the busy, scratched marks. There’s a sense of controlled chaos in the way the figures are rendered. Up close, you can see the dense network of lines creating depth and shadow. The way Keene uses hatching and cross-hatching gives the image a tangible, almost gritty texture. Check out the feet of the figure on the right - Keene has used small, deliberate marks to give them shape and form, creating a sense of solid weight amidst the turmoil. The expressive, raw quality of Keene's style reminds me of Kathe Kollwitz, another artist who used printmaking to explore themes of human struggle. Like Kollwitz, Keene embraces the inherent messiness of the medium, letting the process itself become part of the story. It's a reminder that art isn't about perfection, but about capturing something real and visceral.