Wave 1963

Curator: We are looking at "Wave", a 1963 print by N. Krishna Reddy. I see an interesting abstraction that still holds the dynamism and texture of, well, a wave. Editor: It looks less like a crashing wave and more like a field plowed with tiny geometric patterns, doesn't it? I am so curious about the linocut and its material properties here... and how this seemingly delicate method captures something powerful. Curator: Exactly! Reddy plays with texture and abstraction so cleverly. You can feel the movement, the churn of the water despite the simplification of form. It’s like remembering the essence of a wave. Have you ever seen the ocean so intensely, that your mind starts abstracting? Editor: I like how the color variations reveal the carved surface of the linocut. Think of the physical labor involved in removing material to create those contrasting values. How much force does it require? It's such a departure from the immediacy we associate with abstract expressionism... which reminds me of the printmaking industry... Curator: In the 60's that abstraction often served as conduit to emotional expression. Do you perceive the impact the "wave" had at that moment of the artist's journey and context? What is the essence and emotions you are experiencing when staring at it? It whispers, not shouts, like a quiet memory surfacing. I think this is such a fascinating tension... Editor: Yes, it is true. While you are looking inward, I am more looking outward. Thinking of its place and meaning in the broader visual culture of prints. Was this intended to be reproduced widely or treated as a unique art object? The lines between artistic expression and mechanical reproduction get so deliciously blurred here. Curator: I’m touched by your material insight into Reddy's wave. Editor: And I, yours. Let's both acknowledge there is much about labor and consumption behind it... it reminds me of capitalism and industrial revolution. Let's pause and recognize how it can touch the eye.