Giraffes c. 20th century

Curator: This is John Bernard Flannagan’s woodcut, "Giraffes," housed here at the Harvard Art Museums. It presents a pair of giraffes rendered in stark black and white. Editor: I find it remarkably charming. The heavy lines, the way the negative space defines the forms... it feels both primal and deliberate. Curator: Absolutely. Woodcut as a medium lends itself to such bold contrasts. Consider the social and economic context: prints democratize art. Woodcuts like this made art accessible beyond the elite. Editor: And the subject matter. Giraffes, typically associated with exotic locales, become flattened, almost iconic. I wonder what sort of cultural fascination fueled this particular choice? Curator: Possibly a desire to engage with broader world events and cultures, certainly. The flattened perspective suggests a deliberate distancing, an acknowledgement of the giraffe as spectacle. Editor: It’s a fascinating interplay—a somewhat crude process used to depict an animal perceived as refined and elegant, filtered through societal lenses. I'll be thinking about this for a while. Curator: Indeed, it provides plenty to unpack regarding artistic production and its intersections with society.