Cicada [1/2 trial proof (primaries)] 1979

Editor: This is Jasper Johns’ “Cicada (1/2 trial proof [primaries])” from 1979. It's a mixed-media print with a dense, vibrant pattern. The sheer number of colorful, striped segments is initially quite overwhelming. What are your thoughts? Curator: It's interesting to consider this as a "trial proof." It invites questions about process. What materials were used, and how were they layered? Each stroke, each registration, becomes a deliberate act of construction, almost a form of repetitive labor. Editor: So, are you saying the emphasis is on the act of creating, rather than some deeper meaning? Curator: Exactly. We're pushed to contemplate the means of production. Look at the interplay of colors—they aren't just aesthetically pleasing, but hint at the sequence and techniques Johns used in building the image. How do you think the printing process informs the final result? Editor: Well, thinking about how each colour was probably added separately through layering, I see how the ‘imperfections’ give it character. If it was cleaner, it would lose its feeling. Curator: Precisely! The accidental quality almost celebrates the imperfection inherent in the printing process itself, blurring the line between fine art and the more tactile world of craft. He’s inviting us to reconsider what constitutes 'high art'. Do you think the repetitive mark-making might comment on mass production or consumerism? Editor: Possibly, in the way that it resembles patterns or textiles. It almost looks like fabric samples. Curator: Indeed. Thinking about it as labor also brings in the social dimension—whose hands created this? What value do we place on skilled work? Editor: This reframing really helps me to see beyond the chaotic surface to a really thoughtful consideration of artistic production itself. Curator: Agreed, it makes you reconsider your traditional views on printmaking as craft and allows you to interpret the meaning through the social context.