Escape c. 1937

Clay Edgar Spohn made this drawing, called "Escape", in monochrome, maybe with pencil or charcoal – it’s hard to tell from here. The image is a study in contrasts. A group of figures huddle on the left, whilst another, solitary figure runs toward the horizon, through a portal or doorway. I wonder if Spohn felt a sense of urgency, a need to break free from constraints, as he made this piece? The mark-making is delicate, but decisive. A web of hatching describes the figures and the landscape with great care. The starkness of the image also reminds me of the graphics of artists like Otto Dix or George Grosz. It makes me think about the political and social issues happening at the time the artwork was made. In the end, artists are always riffing off of one another, pulling ideas, and pushing back against conventions. It's a back-and-forth across time and space, each adding their own voice to the conversation.