Still Life

Title

Still Life

Medium

Lino-cut print on paper

Description

Lino-cut print of a still life with fruit, a wine glass and a candle on top of a table

Year

1947

Theme

Linocuts

Archives Control Number

(Lino-cut Prints), 1947-2

Photo Credit

Jason Cawood

Exhibition

At the Archway

Selected by

Victoria Beahm

Exhibition Description

Filer’s progress is shown through these two pieces. The crispness of the black and white image shows that it was printed first, and dullness can be seen in the middle bottom area. This may be from uneven pressure or a thinner layer of ink. It is unknown how many prints were created in total, however the lack of texture from the plate in the coloured print shows ink had built up from previous usage. The coloured print has moisture damage, presumably from the later application of watercolours. The discrepancy between the pieces shows Filer growing more confident with the printing process. What other signs of progress can you see?

Why This Piece Was Chosen

Very little is known about this work as Filer did not document why it was made. Without the contextual information, I found discovering Filer’s process with the print fascinating. At first glance, I assumed that the coloured print was two applications layered on top of each other, one with coloured inks. It was upon closer inspection that the colours were hand-painted. The smooth application of watercolours on a thin sheet of paper had fooled me. The thing that tipped me off was the different stylings of the chalice in the bottom left corner. Printmaking has the unique quality of being able to make near-identical copies until the matrix deteriorates. Identifying which came first through knowledge of the medium was a challenge I found thrilling.