The Couple, Self-Portrait with Wife (Das Paar, Selbstporträt mit Frau) 1922

This aquatint by Walter Gramatté shows himself and his wife, both gazing with equal intensity, made with dark blue lines on a pale ground. The lines are so precise, so close together, that the image becomes almost sculptural, like looking at a bas-relief. Look at the texture in the background; the way the ink has settled into the paper gives the piece a tactile quality, like you could reach out and feel the grain. Then there's that bold stroke across the man's forehead, obscuring half of his face. It’s odd, right? It flattens the image, but it also brings attention to the making of the print. It’s like the artist is saying, “Hey, don’t forget this is an object, a thing made by someone.” Gramatté was an expressionist, but you also see the influence of someone like Edvard Munch in the way he uses those stark lines to convey emotion. It's all about ambiguity, and I think that's what makes art so interesting.