Boats Docked at Harbor c. 1920s

Percy F. Albee made this print of boats docked at a harbor sometime in the first half of the 20th century, using a graphic approach with strong, almost brutal marks. There's a real directness to it, the way he lets the marks stand for things – a scribble for a bush, a heavier cluster for the pilings in the water. I really get a sense of Albee embracing the process of artmaking and revelling in the textures he can achieve with such a limited palette. Check out the lower left corner, see how the marks almost dissolve into abstraction? It’s like he’s saying, "this is just ink on paper," even as he creates this convincing scene. The rough texture reminds me of some of James Ensor's prints, that same willingness to let the medium do its thing. It's a reminder that art is as much about the making as it is about the image. A conversation about the relationship between the world and the image.