Oxfordshire 1906

Muirhead Bone created this sensitive drypoint etching, Oxfordshire. It is all delicate, scratchy lines and tones. I can imagine Muirhead bent over the plate, digging and scraping to build up the image. It looks like quite a tranquil river scene, doesn’t it? The scene shimmers, like a memory or a daydream. It reminds me of Whistler or maybe even some of Turner’s more tonal works. See that tree? It’s like he has drawn with pure light. You can almost feel the breeze and the coolness of the water. The image-making process becomes a kind of inquiry, doesn’t it? It is a way of seeing, thinking, and experiencing the world. Artists, across time, are in an ongoing conversation, inspiring one another’s creativity. Each mark is a conversation with the ones that came before.