Monument for a Fisherman 1988

Curator: Here we have Stephen McKenna's "Monument for a Fisherman," held in the Tate Collections. It presents an intriguing scene rendered in print. Editor: There's something quite stark about this print, almost like a rubbing taken from an ancient stone carving. It evokes a sense of solemnity and timelessness. Curator: McKenna often engages with classical themes and styles. Notice the figures and the composition resembling a Greco-Roman frieze, typical of monumental art intended for public veneration. Editor: Absolutely, and look at the lines – they aren't clean and precise. They feel hastily etched, almost as if the artist wanted to replicate the texture of aged stone itself. Curator: Precisely. The material quality enhances the artwork's narrative. Considering McKenna's broader artistic trajectory, this piece seems to question the heroization of labor within historical art traditions. Editor: That's a keen observation. Focusing on the fisherman, it's as if McKenna used the visual language of classical monuments to offer a humble tribute to the everyday worker. The net appears worn, the figures are not idealized, but grounded in reality. Curator: It's a powerful commentary on how society chooses to memorialize its figures. Editor: Indeed, it compels one to consider the labor and materiality inherent in the artistic process itself, and whose stories are worthy of being immortalized in stone, or in this case, print.