Exhibition Review: Penumbra Foundation | Photography in Ink
@Eric Taubman. Untitled, from the series Tiny Figures, 2022. Photogravure by Miguel Counahan. ©Penumbra Foundation
Written by Sophie Mulgrew
Photo Edited by Billy Chen
Copy Edited by Kee'nan Haggen
The Penumbra Foundations' recent exhibition, Photography in Ink, explores and celebrates the art form of photogravure, a mixed media art practice from the 19th century, which combines photography and printmaking. The collection features two groups of artists: photographers who work with gravure printers and gravure printers who pursue their distinct artistic practice. Between both categories, over 25 contemporary artists are represented, all of whom work within and in conversation with the history of photogravure practice.
@Lothar Osterburg. The Study, 2021. Photogravure by Lothar Osterburg. ©Penumbra Foundation.
In creating a photogravure, artists use an image or negative to develop a copper plate etching and ink-on-paper prints. The technique is known for creating intense tonal depth and textural variety. Close inspection reveals the piece’s distinctive qualities and beauty. The images and work are displayed on walls and, in wooden cases, placed on tables throughout the space. Interspersed between the pieces are informational excerpts about copper-plate photogravure's history and technical complexity. Viewers are immersed in the variety of visual experiences the ink-on-paper aesthetic provides.
@Jenia Fridlyand. From the series Entrance to Our Valley, 2017. Photogravure Portfolio, 2021. Photogravure by Miguel Counahan. ©Penumbra Foundation.
Though there are many images to love, a striking one is Jenia Fridlyand’s portrait of a young girl climbing a tree. Though the image has the familiar documentative feel of photography, its visual experience is heightened and intensified by its ink-on-paper rendering. The shadows are deep and reflective; the sepia-like tone of the background is nostalgic and homely. Compositionally, the image plays with diagonal lines that cast the viewer’s eye across the canvas.
@Miguel Counahan. August 3, 2017. Photogravure by Miguel Counahan. ©Penumbra Foundation.
Striking in an entirely different way is Miguel Counahan’s exploration of darkness and line. In this piece, Counahan highlights the textural dimension of Photogravure and copper-plate etchwork. The piece is mostly black, with a pale smudge towards the bottom and white scratches moving horizontally across the frame’s lower half. The piece highlights the textural depth and variety made possible by the printmaking technique. The image is so visceral one wishes to reach out and touch it, to feel the variety in smooth and rough, flat and rigid. It is compelling and dynamic.
@Costanza Gastaldi. From the Loto Nero Series, 2018 (2019). Photogravure by Fanny Boucher. ©Penumbra Foundation.
Photography in Ink displays the art of photogravure in all its variety and complexity. The collection is a wonderfully comprehensive and instructive look at the art form’s history and the contemporary artists pushing it to new heights.
