Burning the Oquendo 1898 c. 1935 - 1943

Charles Ernest Pont made this print "Burning the Oquendo 1898" sometime in the mid-20th century. It’s a scene of war at sea rendered in black and white. Just imagine Pont, the artist, carving into the block, each line a deliberate act of creation and destruction. There’s a stark contrast in tone; the dark, ominous clouds are juxtaposed against the fierce bursts of fire. I can almost feel the ship, the Oquendo, succumbing to the inferno. Think about how he, Pont, translated the chaos of battle into a controlled composition. The waves crash and surge, their patterns alive with energy, the lines of the rain cutting through the smoke-filled sky. It makes me think of other artists dealing with war, like Goya, but with a very different style. Artists are in conversation, always. There's no definitive meaning here, just a lot of different feelings.