Don Quixote and Sancho Panza 

Editor: This woodcut print, entitled "Don Quixote and Sancho Panza" by Louis Schanker, presents abstracted figures in contrasting blue and red. It's a very dynamic piece; the lines are quite angular. What do you see in this piece through a Formalist lens? Curator: Indeed. Primarily, I observe the composition. The stark division of the pictorial plane into cool blue and warm red fields immediately establishes a dialogue between contrasting realms. Note how the dynamism you observed stems from the tension between those bold shapes carved with such pronounced linearity. The interplay between abstraction and figuration prompts a visual puzzle: can you discern how the artist balances these seemingly contradictory elements? Editor: I see it now! It's like the figures are suggested rather than explicitly defined. It is almost cubist in its approach, breaking the figures down. Curator: Precisely. This fractured representation allows for a simultaneous perception of multiple viewpoints, challenging conventional perspective. Moreover, contemplate the material itself – the woodcut technique. The gouges and grains inherent to the medium imbue the print with a tactile quality. Consider how the bold contrast of black ink against the colored background impacts our perception of form and space. Editor: So, by emphasizing the basic elements like line, color, and medium, Schanker achieves a visual experience that is less about representation and more about...visual structure. Curator: Precisely. Through line, form, and color, the artist has structured not a narrative but a sensation. I'm left to ask how does an awareness of Schanker's manipulation of form invite an appreciation of the philosophical tensions between the ideal and the real in "Don Quixote and Sancho Panza." Editor: I was so focused on recognizing the figures that I didn't truly look at the construction of the print. That completely shifts the focus. Curator: By engaging with the internal relationships of its constitutive parts, the artist successfully communicates the spirit of Don Quixote, which resides as a psychological encounter.