Night 1939

This is an etching called 'Night' by Will Barnet, and when I look at it I imagine him carefully applying acid to a metal plate. Look at how he creates these dark and light effects, almost like a dreamscape. I can feel the stillness of the night, the weight of the darkness, and the quiet of the sleeping figure. What was it like to be Will Barnet making this? Maybe he felt like he was capturing a mood, or trying to catch a glimpse of something hidden in the shadows. And what is she dreaming about? The sharp angles and lines remind me of other etchers, like Whistler or Hopper, who used their lines to create a sense of loneliness or unease. It’s like he’s in conversation with them, riffing on similar ideas. It’s pretty wild to think that all these artists are connected through time and space, inspiring each other's creativity. Night, stillness, darkness, quiet... it's all here but there is always room to interpret it differently.