Manna 1961

Sid Hammer made this print, “Manna,” in 1961. Look at the scratching, the etching, the bite of the acid on the plate. I wonder if he worked on it slowly, building up the image over time. There’s a crowd of people, maybe huddled together, and then these vertical lines that could be rain, or light. Maybe it’s what the title suggests: manna falling from the sky. I feel like I am in a forest but the trees are people and hope. Hammer is walking a tightrope. He could so easily have tumbled into sentimentality, yet there’s an edge here that makes it real. He’s not afraid to leave things unresolved, and that's what keeps it interesting, I think. Every artist is in conversation with those who came before, picking up where they left off, and pushing the dialogue forward.