The Solent 1920

Muirhead Bone made this atmospheric etching called 'The Solent' sometime between the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Look at that sky – all those tiny, teeming marks, like scratches, capturing a very specific light. I can imagine Bone hunched over the plate, working and reworking it, maybe even out in the landscape itself. There’s a real sense of place and a particular feeling that comes through. It's all about the tone. It's like the ink is barely there, but somehow it builds into these complicated layers. Those dark masses of trees at the bottom, and the way the land stretches out into the distance, meeting that band of water. This reminds me of Whistler and the whole etching revival thing that was going on back then. Artists were really getting into printmaking as a way to capture the world in a more intimate, immediate way. They're all in conversation, trading ideas, and riffing off each other's work. That's what art is all about, right?