Colophon for "Small Mnemonic Devices" 1971

William Dole made this lithograph titled ‘Colophon for “Small Mnemonic Devices”’ in 1971 at the Tamarind Institute, Albuquerque. I love how Dole has pieced together this image, like a fragmented memory reconstructed. You can sense his hand in the texture, in the way the ink transfers so imperfectly and organically. He’s not trying to hide the process; he's embracing it. It's almost as if he’s riffing on collage, but using the language of lithography – these different tones and textures. Dole is reminding us that every artist is in conversation with those who came before, and I can see echoes of Kurt Schwitters, and even Robert Rauschenberg here. Dole’s work makes me think of a stream of consciousness - a painterly way of mapping his mind.