Plate 15 1940 - 1943

Louie H. Ewing made Plate 15 as a repeating pattern in warm reds, muted pinks, beiges, and blacks. I can imagine Ewing slowly painting each stripe across the surface, thinking about color combinations, how the pattern can be adapted and changed. The zigzags create a strong rhythm that vibrates. What’s interesting is how the subtle variations between the rows give the image a handmade quality, so different from digital patterns. These slight imperfections and subtle variations give the print a certain charm. They reveal the artist’s hand. I can imagine Ewing thinking of the patterns of Native American textiles, reinterpreting them through his own artistic language. Like so many artists, he was having a conversation with the past, reinterpreting traditional patterns through a modern lens. I love the feeling of repetition, but also that human touch, like the artist is thinking while he is doing, creating a conversation between hand and mind.