The Farewell 1926

Editor: Here we have Frans Masereel's "The Farewell," a woodcut print. The stark black and white creates a very dramatic and poignant atmosphere. What do you make of it? Curator: This woodcut, like many of Masereel's works, highlights the labor involved in its creation. The bold, graphic style and the very act of carving the wood block, speaks to the means of production available at the time and the social context of printmaking as a medium for mass communication. Editor: So, it's less about the emotional content and more about how it was made and distributed? Curator: The emotional content is there, but it's inseparable from the materiality and the context in which it was produced. The choice of a woodcut itself makes a statement about accessibility and the democratization of art. Editor: That's a really interesting way to look at it, thinking about how the materials and the process contribute to the overall message. Curator: Precisely! Considering the means of production opens up new avenues of interpretation.