E.007 Gardens (with running figure) 1989

• I. 1st state of 3

  

  Drypoint. A view of a city park, in which tall trees diagonally traverse the gardens from centre left to lower right. The trees are backlit with strong light. Behind them, at the upper right, are two tall city buildings, and curving around the front of the trees is a narrow path. In the lower left corner is the dark figure of a fleeing man. The scene is scored entirely with drypoint.

  Impression with rich burr, on wove Fabriano Tiepolo paper with watermark, printed by Rick Amor at Phillip Institute of Technology, Bundoora (Melbourne). Inscribed in pencil, below the plate mark: lower left: ‘3 [circled]’; lower right: signed and dated ‘Rick Amor 89’. Although inscribed ‘3’, this is the first state.

• II. 2nd state of 3

  The drypointed plate has been densely cross-hatched with etched lines, so that the scene is plunged into darkness. Half-lights have been burnished between the nearest trees. There are two variant impressions of this state.

  1. Impression on wove paper, printed by Rick Amor at Phillip Institute of Technology, Bundoora (Melbourne). Inscribed in pencil, below the plate mark: lower left: ‘A/P’; lower centre: ‘Gardens’; lower right: signed and dated ‘Rick Amor 89’.
  2. Impression with plate tone, on wove Fabriano Tiepolo paper with watermark, printed by Rick Amor at Phillip Institute of Technology, Bundoora (Melbourne). Inscribed in pencil, below the plate mark: lower left: ‘6 [circled]’; lower centre: ‘Gardens’; lower right: signed and dated ‘Rick Amor ’89’. Although inscribed ‘6’, this is an impression of the second state. 

• II.a. Artist’s proof of 2nd state of 3

  

  The drypointed plate has been densely cross-hatched with etched lines, so that the scene is plunged into darkness. Half-lights have been burnished between the nearest trees. There are two variant impressions of this state.

• III. 3rd and final state (Featured Image)

  

  Etched hatching and definition has been added to many areas of the plate. A vertical line has been burnished along the left contour of the taller of the city buildings at the upper right.

  Impression on Fabriano paper, printed by Rick Amor at Phillip Institute of Technology, Bundoora (Melbourne). Inscribed in pencil, below the plate mark: lower left: ‘A/P’; lower centre: ‘Gardens’; lower right: signed and dated ‘Rick Amor ’89’.

   

• No edition

• Comment

  This etching belongs to a small group of related images set in the Fitzroy Gardens – a public park on the rim of the city of Melbourne – and painted and printed around 1988–89. E.007 was made after a woodcut from the same year but is in reverse orientation. The nocturnal setting makes it difficult to distinguish the running figure at the lower left, since it merges into the darkness, appearing to be not simply running, but fleeing, though why and from what is unknown.

  Only two numbered state impressions of the work have survived and these are inscribed ‘3’ and ‘6’ respectively, indicating that other impressions were printed, but were destroyed by the artist. The major change to the plate occurred in the second state, with the decision to create a darker image by applying a mesh of etching over the drypoint. The resulting penumbral effect was heightened in the final state with the addition of more etched hatching, and with the etched definition of the contours of the trees, the path, and the running figure.

  For other intaglio prints by Amor that depict Fitzroy Gardens subjects, see cat. nos E.071, E.079 and E.136.