(Bicyclists) Support the War Veterans 1931

Philip Reisman made this small etching of bicyclists with ink, a plate, and I imagine, a fair bit of pressure. See how all the marks coalesce into a crowd of people and bikes, a park, and buildings in the background. I see what looks like war veterans. What was Reisman thinking as he drew each of those tiny lines? Did he start with the figures, or did he map out the setting first? There's a real commitment to the daily grind on display, like in the work of the Ashcan School painters like John Sloan. And, though this is a print and not a painting, you can almost feel the textures of the city through the scratchy lines and hatching. Reisman's work reminds me that even in the smallest gesture, we can find a whole world of meaning and connection. He is in dialogue with other artists of his time, thinking about how to represent contemporary life. It’s like artists are always talking to each other.