Dream of the Print Seller 1968

Warrington Colescott made this print, Dream of the Print Seller, with etching. It looks like he’s built up layers of acid biting into the metal plate. I can imagine him inking up the plate, wiping it back, and sending it through the press. I wonder what Colescott was thinking when he made this? It feels kind of dreamlike and nightmarish, all these weird characters crammed together, with the green and purple hues adding to the strange atmosphere. I’m drawn to the guy at the top pointing a gun. It reminds me of film noir and a gangster movie. He’s balanced by the woman to the left, the only figure not caught up in the dark mood. She’s looking right at us. This print connects with Colescott’s wider interest in social satire and history, but filtered through his own unique, slightly off-kilter vision. Artists are always in conversation, picking up ideas from each other across time. It’s an ongoing exchange that keeps art alive.