Buffel 1930

Samuel Jessurun de Mesquita created this striking woodcut print, Buffel. The stark contrast comes from the nature of the medium itself. Wood, with its inherent grain, demands a simplification of form. With a sharp knife, Mesquita would have laboriously carved away the areas that would remain white, leaving the buffalo and landscape in relief. This process is physically demanding, requiring both strength and precision, and would have been done in reverse. Ink would then be rolled onto the surface, and the image transferred to paper under great pressure. Look closely, and you can almost feel the artist's hand at work. The bold lines and shapes speak to the woodcut's historical association with the production of affordable images for a broad public. Although this particular print is a one-off artwork, it is rooted in a democratic process of making, far from the rarefied world of painting. It is through this interplay of material, process, and social context that we come to a fuller appreciation of the work.