Lighthouse (Leuchtturm) 1919

Lyonel Feininger created this woodcut titled "Lighthouse" using graphic lines and a vivid contrast between pink and black. It’s all about the push and pull between these two simple colors and how they create depth and form, right? I can almost feel Feininger wrestling with the block of wood, figuring out which parts to carve away and which to leave standing. Did he want to create a sense of rhythm and movement, with these slashing diagonal lines across the sky, or just cut the damn thing and have done? Maybe he just wanted to see how much he could get away with! I love the way the lighthouse rises up like a beacon, a steadfast point of reference amidst the chaos of the sea and sky. It reminds me that artists are in constant dialogue with each other. Feininger was looking at Cubism, I’m sure of it. It’s all connected, this search to capture something essential about the world and our place in it. What do you think?