The West c. 1930

Editor: This is Clara MacGowan's woodcut print, "The West", circa 1930. The striking contrast between the black ink and the paper gives it a really dramatic feel, almost a little foreboding. What stands out to you? Curator: Its formal qualities command attention. Note how the artist employs stark contrast and geometric forms to construct a visual language, paring down naturalistic elements into a symphony of shapes and lines. Editor: The geometric shapes definitely give it an almost abstract feel, even though it's clearly a landscape. I'm curious about the trees on the right side – what do they contribute to the overall composition? Curator: Observe how these fractured arboreal forms establish a dialogue with the mountain on the left, creating a visual tension across the pictorial field. The artist is playing with our perceptions. Are the trees collapsing or reaching? The mountain emerging or receding? Consider also the interplay between positive and negative space; how does this relationship structure our reading of the composition as a whole? Editor: That's fascinating! So the space itself becomes as important as the objects it defines? It’s not just background? Curator: Precisely. It's a formal exploration of depth, texture and line as a tool to lead the eye across a landscape – a constructed one that’s heavily coded to affect how the viewer reads nature as image. Editor: This really changes my perspective on it. Thank you! Curator: My pleasure. Close formal readings give access to new meanings, a valuable insight that unlocks a lot about an artwork’s purpose.