[no title] 1998

Editor: This untitled print from 1991 by John Walker uses such fascinating textures. The figures seem to emerge from the darkness. What do you see in the way Walker constructed this piece? Curator: Well, let's consider the labor involved in etching. The deliberate scratching into the plate, the controlled acid bath... It speaks to a process of controlled destruction and creation, doesn't it? Think of the social context of printmaking then – its role in mass production, the democratization of art. Editor: That's an interesting point about democratization. So the process is as important as the image? Curator: Absolutely. The image is born from the material. The consumption of art is also influenced by the process. What do you take from that? Editor: I hadn't thought about it that way. I was so focused on the figures. Thanks for this perspective. Curator: My pleasure. Examining the materiality changes the entire context and meaning of the work.