Park in Spring 1936

Lucy B. L'Engle made this print, "Park in Spring," using a technique called etching. This is an indirect form of printmaking, requiring patience and skill. The artist would have coated a metal plate with a waxy, acid-resistant substance, then scratched an image into the wax with a needle to expose the metal. The plate was then submerged in acid, which bit into the exposed lines, creating grooves. After removing the wax, ink was forced into the grooves. Finally, the plate was pressed onto paper, transferring the image. The resulting print has a unique, slightly irregular line quality that’s very different from a drawing. Look closely, and you can see how the etched lines vary in thickness and depth, giving the image a textured, almost sculptural feel. In this image, the figures and landscape are both reduced to simplified, geometric forms, giving the park a distinctly modern, even slightly unsettling atmosphere. The act of etching, with its reliance on skilled labor and a complex process, makes us consider the work involved in representing even a scene of leisure. It reminds us that art is always the product of human effort and ingenuity.