Hounds in Leash 1922

This woodcut, *Hounds in Leash,* shows a figure running with two dogs, and was made by Wilhelm Hunt Diederich. I can imagine him, carving into the wood, guided by the contrast of the image coming into being through the darkness around it. I’m really struck by the way the dogs seem to strain forward, pushing ahead through the grass. You can feel the tension of the leash in the figure's arm. The figure almost seems secondary to the pull of those dogs. The landscape is made up of these slashing strokes, which seem to emphasize the movement and energy of the scene. Look at how the sun is present as a ghostly, soft glow. We can think about Diederich being inspired by German Expressionist woodcuts. The medium lends itself to bold, graphic forms and stark contrasts. Artists are always having a conversation, riffing off one another! It’s a reminder that art is never created in isolation but emerges from an ongoing exchange of ideas and inspiration.