Sheep Shearing 1932

Clare Leighton made this print, called 'Sheep Shearing', with a monochrome palette and some pretty radical mark-making. It’s all about the cut of the tool, isn't it? Look at the way she carves into the block to create the wool, each stroke defining the texture. It's really tactile. It's not just a picture; it’s about the physical act of making, the push and pull, and the resistance of the material. It really hits home when you consider that everything you see here is not applied, but taken away! See how the lines of the landscape create a rhythm, almost like a musical score, guiding our eyes across the scene? And notice how those dark, dense marks contrast with the lighter areas, giving the image depth and weight, and this is such an important, but often overlooked element of printmaking. I’m reminded of the woodcuts of someone like Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, a master of using stark contrasts to convey the drama of modern life. Anyway, art's just a big conversation, right? A constant echo of ideas and techniques across time.