Calcio (Soccer) 1958

Clare Romano made this print called Calcio, that's Soccer in Italian, using black ink on a white sheet, and you can see the energy of that title in the players. The image feels both joyful and strange. The players almost appear to be floating, as if they’re in a dream, or a half-remembered scene. The composition is striking; the flat, graphic quality of the printmaking technique really emphasizes the strong lines and shapes that make up the image. I imagine Romano carefully carving away at the block, letting the white of the paper act as a kind of negative space, defining the figures and the world around them. I wonder, what was Romano thinking about when she made this? What kind of conversations did she have with other printmakers? I imagine her working away in her studio, experimenting and refining her technique, with a real sense of play. Ultimately, it's that kind of artistic dialogue that inspires and shapes our understanding of the world.