Milltown 1937

Blanche Grambs’ print, "Milltown," captures a nocturne with soft, smudgy charcoal-like marks and muted tones, like a memory half-forgotten. I can almost feel the artist at work, her hand moving across the plate, coaxing light from darkness. It’s a tricky thing, this dance with tonality. Look how she’s built up these layers, creating depth and atmosphere, a palpable sense of place. You can tell Grambs is interested in the textures and surfaces around her. See how the granular quality of the printmaking mimics the grit and grime of an industrial landscape? I wonder if Grambs was thinking of the Ashcan School when she made this. She captures a similar feeling, an interest in the mundane beauty of ordinary life. I love to see artists in conversation like this, building upon each other’s ideas, pushing the boundaries of what art can be. Each mark holds a decision, a feeling, a moment of seeing. Each layer, a conversation between the artist and her work.