Head of Man with Beard 1931

Elias Grossman made this print, "Head of Man with Beard," at some point in his short life. Look at the way he builds up the image with these tiny, etched lines. It's almost pointillist, but with a nervous energy that feels very modern. You can tell he's really thinking about how mark-making constructs form. The surface is all about texture, isn't it? The beard is this cloud of white space, but it’s made up of these distinct, wiry scratches. You can practically feel the burr of the etching needle. The deep, dark hatching around the face throws it into relief. Grossman's really grappling with light and shadow here, pulling a form out of the darkness. It’s something you see in Rembrandt's etchings too. Grossman doesn't copy him, but you can see they’re both interested in how much feeling you can get from a simple line. And ultimately, that's what printmaking is all about - the conversation between artists across time.