Ancestors 1953

Dorothy Dehner made this etching, called Ancestors, by carving lines into a metal plate and using ink to create the image on paper. The figures are so fascinating, aren't they? They look like they have emerged slowly from a subconscious place, where lines and shapes can suggest a figure, but never fully resolve into one. I imagine Dehner digging into the metal, almost like an archeological dig, searching for these figures in her mind. The term “ancestors” suggests a lineage, a nod to the past, yet the forms themselves are so abstract and otherworldly. Dehner was part of a community of artists who were trying to reinvent how we see the world. It makes me wonder, how does she think we are connected to our ancestors? What wisdom do they hold? Maybe it is more of a feeling than a fixed idea, but for me, I think Dehner shows how painting can be a way to explore those connections.