Edda, der Weltbrandt 1923

Joseph Weisz made this print titled "Edda, der Weltbrandt" and it shows the end of the world. Look at that wild rider! I wonder what it was like for Weisz to cut these stark contrasts into the block, the energy of his tool making a frenzy of marks. See how everything seems to be moving and falling apart. The horse looks crazed, leaping over a landscape that gives way to the dark depths below. I get the feeling that he wasn’t planning this out, but just letting it happen. There's something about the way the marks build up the image that reminds me of other German Expressionist artists like Kirchner and Schmidt-Rottluff, who were grappling with the anxieties of their time. Weisz captures something about the raw feeling of chaos, the kind of feeling that sticks with you. It makes me want to grab a tool and start carving.