Haying 1946

Bernard Joseph Steffen made this print, titled "Haying," and it's all about these figures working in the fields, kind of engulfed by the haystacks under a dark sky. You can almost feel the sun beating down, even though it's not in view, and imagine the workers straining to get the hay in. The image uses flat planes of color and stylized forms to give a sense of rhythm and movement. It's interesting to think about how Steffen might have approached the block printing process. Maybe he started with a sketch, then carved away at the wood to leave these simplified shapes. Notice how the gestures of the figures, the way they reach and bend, communicate a sense of labor and perseverance. The dark blue and tan colors give it a somber feeling, but there’s a sense of resilience in the way the figures keep working despite the conditions. It reminds me a little of Thomas Hart Benton's regionalist paintings, but with a more graphic, flattened approach. Artists are always looking at each other and responding to each other's work!