Title

Winter trees [by Murray Griffin].

Author

Bunbury, Alisa.

Source

[Not applicable]

Publication date

1998

Type

About the work

Language

English

Country of context

Australia

Full text

Winter trees.

Winter trees was the last print produced by Griffin. Commissioned by David Ellis and Lyall Burton of the Golden Age Fine Art Gallery in Ballarat, it was printed with assistance on Griffin’s press. The print demonstrates the difficulty Griffin had in working the block, although the rough gouges present a powerful urgency and energy which does not appear in many his prints. A zigzag stroke, which Griffin used only in his latest prints, has been applied for the foliage, which contrasts with the simple shape of the post-and-rail fence, a form much loved by Griffin. The paper is more absorbent than that which Griffin usually used. This has resulted in a softened edge to the lines. The trees and vertical strokes of the sky bear a strong similarity to a wood engraving, Log-Hauling by Anton Lock, reproduced in The Studio’s 1930 special edition The New Woodcut.

© Alisa Bunbury, 1998.