Barn Interior c. 1932

Wanda Gág made this drawing of a barn interior sometime during her career with pen and ink on paper. It’s all about mark-making. The lines are quick, gestural, like a seismograph of her immediate experience. Look at the lower left - what is that thing? An old boot, maybe? It's rendered with such a quirky, almost cartoonish energy. See how the shadows aren’t filled in, but rather hatched? It’s like she’s building the forms with strokes. The whole thing feels like a jumble, but then your eye finds its way through. It reminds me a little of Piranesi's etchings, those imaginary prisons, but with a homey, farm-y twist. Gág did a lot of lithographs and wood engravings, you know, and you can see that graphic sensibility at play here. It’s like she’s carving into the page with her pen. Art is never a solo act, it’s always a conversation.