Drawn to the Page

Title of artwork:

The Door

Artist:

Annesley, Mabel

Materials:

Paper (fiber material), Ink

Techniques:

Wood engraving

Engraver:

Annesley, Mabel

Author:

Rowley, Richard

Title of Publication:

County Down songs

Publisher:

Duckworth and Co.

Publication place:

London

Publication date:

1924

Curator Comment:

Richard Rowley was the pseudonym of Richard Valentine Williams, the Belfast-born poet and dramatist. Rowley’s writings addressed the social realities of life among Northern Ireland’s urban working classes and small-holding farmers.

Note on artwork:

These images by Annesley display a certain deviation from her usual stylistic approach. The image of the left is a much reduced, simplified depiction of a shoreline, the edges of the forms are crisply cut, textural marks are kept to minimum. In the recto image the mark making is quite ragged, the process of gouging the wood block is more evident, however, the motifs remain abstracted in form. The emphasis on linear elements - in particular the use of compacted, parallel lines - suggests energy and movement.

References:

Snoddy (2002) and ODNB online and DIB online