For Nasson College 1970

Rudy Pozzatti made this print, called ‘For Nasson College’, using black ink on paper. When I look at this piece I think of carving a block of wood: each mark committed to the surface, a decision made and then unmade. It’s a world of contrasts, light against dark, the courage of the lion against the fear of the unknown, or is it? Look at the figure in the feathered helmet, peering out, a bit like an actor on a stage, a theatrical backdrop of arches, stone work, and dense foliage. I imagine Rudy, his brow furrowed in concentration, carefully choosing each line, each shape, each tone. ‘Verite Sans Peur,’ Truth Without Fear, a motto from the past, reverberating through the ages. It’s like he's whispering, "Here's a fragment, a glimpse, a story. Now, what do you make of it?" That lion, that stare, the sheer physicality of the printmaking process... Rudy makes you feel the grit, the effort, the beauty of trying to say something real in a world of illusions.