Appreciating Picasso: Memories of Guernica

1/8 V/E b&w print:
Spirit Horse Cry of Freedom

I carved and printed this black and white woodblock print Spirit Horse Cry of Freedom during Robert Hinchley’s class at Pontiac School of the Arts, summer 2012.

As a teenager, I visited the Picasso and Man show at the Art Gallery of Toronto (now Art Gallery of Ontario) in 1964. I was impressed by the power of Picasso’s spare line – and how emotionally evocative simplicity of form can be.

I saw Guernica there. Its raw depiction of terror, death, and spirited acts of defence inspired awe in me.

In Spirit Horse Cry of Freedom, I acknowledge spirituality and raw life force. I printed this block as a Variable Edition (VE) eight times, using different colours, some of which I printed on handmade paper I created in Narrawong, Victoria, Australia in 2010.