Paul Landacre

I’m extremely fortunate to own this Paul Landacre wood engraving titled “Siesta’ which he made in the 1930’s. The image is quite large for this technique measuring 7.5 by 9 inches – the print quality is stunning.

I was so happy to have discovered him a few years ago, now he ranks as one of my favorite engravers. He spent most of his life in California where he produced a large volume of work dedicating himself entirely to wood engraving. As you can see Landacre is a master of cross-hatching allowing him to model shapes with all grades of shading. Of course, he’s not a ‘one trick pony’, his other work reveals a wide repertoire of engraving techniques. (click on image for enlargement)

I’ve included a detail of his cuts for those that might find it interesting.

One might argue that this approach is too mechanical although I wouldn’t agree – certainly that can’t be said about his draughtsmanship.

His flawless technique results in a beautiful balance between white and black.