Rural Route #3 1960

Mabel Ameila Hewit made this print, Rural Route #3, with coloured inks and a linoleum block. Look at how the marks are laid down, like simple jigsaw pieces interlocking to create the form. There is a flattening of space, but it’s a flattening that gives you so much information. The image is made up of many flat planes, but there's a subtle texture to each one, which allows light to play on the surface, bringing the scene alive. I love the way she’s used these earthy tones of green, brown, and ochre, which are punctuated by the red building. See how the building in the top left feels much further away? It is interesting to me that the image looks almost like a collage, a medium often used by Henri Matisse. He used cut paper shapes, and Hewit used cut linoleum blocks! Art is this amazing conversation that happens across time and space, isn't it? And ultimately, it's the viewer who decides what it all means.