Blacksmith c. 1940s

Roderick Fletcher Mead made this lithograph, "Blacksmith," using stone as his medium. I can just imagine him bent over the stone, drawing with a greasy crayon to achieve that soft, almost velvety texture. The whole print is an exercise in gray, with an emphasis on the stark contrast between light and shadow. Mead is really putting light to work here, using it to define the figure of the blacksmith, catching the curve of his back as he raises his hammer. I bet Mead was thinking about the dignity of labor, the human cost, the sheer physical strength it takes to transform raw materials into something useful. It reminds me of some of the social realist prints made during the WPA era. Artists like Elizabeth Catlett and Jacob Lawrence come to mind. There's a similar focus on everyday people, on the beauty and hardship of working-class life. Ultimately, it's a testament to the enduring power of art to connect us to each other, across time and space.