Cephalus and Aurora (1) 1998

Editor: This is Leon Kossoff's "Cephalus and Aurora (1)," an etching from the Tate collection. The loose lines almost look unfinished. What can you tell me about it? Curator: Note the aquatint ground. Kossoff's etching exemplifies a tension between classical subject matter and industrial process. How does the labor-intensive etching process affect your reading of this mythological scene? Editor: I hadn’t considered that. The contrast makes it feel more immediate, more human. Curator: Precisely! Kossoff reclaims traditional narratives, grounding them in the realities of material production and the artist's hand. Editor: That's a new way to approach classical themes; seeing the labor involved adds another layer. Curator: Indeed, the act of making informs the meaning itself.