Boer en boerin 1924

Jo Bezaan made this woodcut print, Boer en boerin, with ink on paper. Look at the way Bezaan uses the contrast of black and white to create dynamic shapes, it's all about the push and pull between the two. The carving marks are so visible, aren't they? You can see how the artist has chipped away at the wood to make the image appear. The texture of the print is so appealing and tangible. I love the way Bezaan uses the black to suggest detail, like in the farmer's suit. Then there's the way she uses the white to define shapes, like the woman's face, or in the thatched roofs of the buildings. It's such a powerful, graphic image. And, to me, this print shares something with the work of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, with it's pared back color scheme and focus on the figures. Prints like this remind us that art is always in conversation, each artist building on the work of those who came before, and offering something new to those who come after.