[no title] 1995

Curator: I’m immediately drawn to the raw energy of this small etching by Per Kirkeby, held in the Tate Collections. It’s a flurry of lines! Editor: Yes, and consider its materiality. Etching, historically accessible due to relatively inexpensive materials like copper plates and acid. Kirkeby uses this democratic medium to explore abstract forms, seemingly rooted in landscape. Curator: There's a tension between representation and abstraction here. Is it a bird? A cliff face? The ambiguity pulls me in. It reminds me of childhood drawings, immediate and unfiltered. Editor: I agree. The printmaking process itself – the biting of the acid, the wiping of the plate – mirrors that raw, almost violent energy. It's not just about the image, but the labor, the process of making. Curator: Ultimately, it's a beautiful example of how constraint can spark creativity. Editor: Indeed. A study of the hand, the material, the world.