Gezicht op een boom op een begraafplaats before 1912

This photogravure of a tree in a graveyard was made by Henry Taunt, and it’s so interesting the way he’s used light and shadow. Look at how the greys sort of bleed into each other, creating a soft, diffused effect. There's something really tactile about the printmaking process. It’s about the way the ink sits on the paper, the pressure of the plate, the way the image emerges from the darkness. In this picture, the tree trunk is a solid, almost sculptural form, while the branches dissolve into a misty background. The graveyard is like a soft, hazy blanket, and it’s hard to tell where the earth ends and the sky begins. It’s all about this dance between what's there and what isn't, what's solid and what's ephemeral. It makes me think about the etchings of Rembrandt. He captures this similar way of creating atmosphere through light and dark. Both artists teach us to see the world not just as it is, but as it feels, full of mystery.