The Dreamer 1946

Ruth Lewin made this block print, The Dreamer, sometime before 1975. It’s a world of black and white, where the contrast is stark, and the lines are decisive. You can see the artist’s hand in every mark, there’s no hiding, which I love. The density of the black ink really grabs you, doesn’t it? It almost feels like you could run your fingers over the surface and feel the texture of the block, even though it’s smooth. Notice how the shapes fit together, like pieces of a puzzle, each with its own weight and presence. Take the face in the upper center: those big, staring eyes have a hypnotic quality, pulling you into the dreamer’s world. Lewin’s image shares something with the works of artists like Kirchner or Heckel, those German expressionists, in its intensity and raw emotion. It’s like she’s tapped into something primal, something that speaks to the core of human experience. It reminds me that art is about seeing and feeling, not just understanding.