Altenberg (Ertsgebergte) 1923

Leo Gestel made this print, Altenberg, with etching in 1923. Just look at how the artist pulled all those dark lines together to create this landscape. I can just imagine Gestel outside somewhere in the cold, hunched over, squinting to capture the scene as he etches with a needle into the plate. Each stroke, each shadow—what might he have been thinking? The density of marks is intriguing. The image is created with a kind of short-hand; look how he makes atmosphere with just a few dark lines. It feels like a drawing, but it’s been printed. I think of other landscape artists and printmakers, like, say, Emil Nolde, who were making prints at this time. There’s a conversation going on, with artists pushing and pulling at the image, seeing what they can get away with. The rough texture gives it such energy. For me, this little village scene opens up all kinds of questions about image-making itself.