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PARR (1893-1969) KINNGAIT (CAPE DORSET)
Untitled, 1962 #56
etching
plate: 9.75 x 11.75 in (24.8 x 29.8 cm)
sheet: 12.25 x 16.75 (31.1 x 42.5 cm)
SOld
Etchings, like engravings, comprise only a small part of Parr's print oeuvre; his production was limited to three examples only, in the 1962 Kinngait print collection. Terry Ryan tried to encourage Parr’s efforts, “In an attempt to help him better his copper-plate efforts, he was introduced to soft-ground etching, yet he never fully understood nor wished to partake in controlling the acid-bath technique dictated by the medium” [1]. It turns out that Terry Ryan ran Parr’s copper plate through the acid bath; presumably Parr was terrified to do so! But the effort was well worth it; the resulting print is lovely. Interestingly, the overall effect is much closer to Parr’s drawing style that the engravings.
In the present untitled work, jaunty, richly inked silhouettes illustrate many of the animals with which Parr was most familiar. The figures depicted by the artist comprise a lexicon of his own making, and their forms are readily apparent to those familiar with the artist's unique style. The walrus, seal, and whale are stacked in three horizontal bands; sandwiched between the latter two is a small, alert dog. Flanking the group of mammals are two geese.
1. Terry Ryan, “Introduction” in Kingait Press, Parr, 1893-1969, A Print Retrospective (Cape Dorset: Kingait Press, 1969) p. 5.