Dead Sea Gull
1965
20th century
29 1/4 in. x 19 in. (74.3 cm x 48.26 cm)
Wendell Black,
American,
(1919–1972)
Object Type:
Prints
Creation Place:
North America, United States
Medium and Support:
engraving on paper
Credit Line:
Carleton College Art Collection, purchased with funds from the General Services Foundation, family foundation of John M. Musser
Accession Number:
1998.032
In Dead Sea Gull, the artist combined disturbing subject matter with virtuoso technique to create an unforgettable image. Engraving, perfected as an art medium by such Northern Renaissance artists as Albrecht Durer is seldom used in the twentieth century. In this technique, lines are incised in the metal plate with a buren, a metal tool requiring considerable force and control. With the more popular etching technique, by contrast, lines are created by drawing into an acid-resistant ground covering the plate. Black's intricately drawn Dead Sea Gull seems to defy the inherent rigidity of the engraving process.
Wendell Black received a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Iowa where Maurizio Lasansky, by teaching teachers and through his art, stimulated a printmaking revival in the U.S. after World War II. From a teaching post at the Unversity of Colorado, Black in turn trained Ray Jacobson, who joined the Carleton art faculty in 1955.
In 1966, a host of events including the Centennial Print Invitational Exhibition marked the Carleton College Centennial. The Dead Sea Gull, along with several other works, was purchased for the College with funds donated by the General Services Foundation through trustee John M. Musser.