Interior #2 1950

Ruth Lewin made this print called Interior #2. I can only imagine her carving away at the block, each line a commitment, a decision etched into the surface. What's so compelling is how she has created this whole world within a frame using just black and white. You've got these sharp, angular shapes crashing into each other, but then there are also soft, curved lines, like whispers in the chaos. It feels like Lewin is conjuring up a space that's both familiar and totally alien. Look at the way she uses patterns. The zigzags, the stripes, the little dots. It's like she's creating a secret code, inviting us to decipher the hidden meanings within the image. It makes me think about other printmakers like, say, Gauguin, who also used bold lines and simplified forms to convey powerful emotions. There's a conversation happening between artists across time, each one building upon the ideas of the last. I find beauty in the unknowability of this image, in its refusal to be pinned down to one single interpretation.