Bathers, Plate III 1928

Harold Weston made this print called Bathers, Plate III, using etching on paper. Look at how the dark ink creates these bold shapes of bodies against the lighter background. It's all about contrast, creating a scene with such simple means. The texture is key here; the rough, almost grainy quality of the ink gives the image a tactile feel. You can almost feel the resistance of the plate against the paper. Notice that strong, dark shape of the figure lying back. It dominates the composition, doesn't it? It's solid, weighty, yet also seems to float on the surface of the water. Weston reminds me of Paula Modersohn-Becker with the simple shapes. But while Modersohn-Becker used lots of colour, Weston does it all with value. The beauty of printmaking is that it invites so many interpretations, each pull of the press offering something slightly different.