Man with Drill 1931

This striking, graphic woodcut entitled ‘Man with Drill’ was made by Charles Turzak, but we’re not sure exactly when. Look at how the artist uses the black and white of the medium to create a very dynamic sense of space, and the way the image seems to vibrate. The whole scene is constructed from these deeply carved lines which have a rhythm all of their own. It reminds me that making art is a process of construction, built up layer by layer. Look at the way that Turzak builds up the image from these marks. They are sometimes very close together, sometimes much further apart, giving the image areas of contrasting density and weight. My eye is drawn to the way the buildings in the background are rendered, with these stacked, geometric forms. The overall effect reminds me a little of some of the German Expressionist woodcuts from the early 20th Century, but Turzak is doing something all of his own here. For me, this piece embraces ambiguity; it’s a conversation in mark-making, across time.