The Party Animal

I stumbled upon John Dawson's work while simply "Googling" different types of intaglio etchings. I noticed that some of his etchings were quiet detailed, while others carried a simple image but a strong impression was made on the viewer. Dawson actually attended Northen Illinois University where he obtained a bachelor's degree in Fine Arts and then went on to further his education. Another thing that caught my attention was that he specializes in "works of fine art which are personal, perceptive, and psychological." Most of his works consist of people and are etched onto zinc plates and then printed individually onto paper.

The image shown here is entitled "The Party Animal." This is the first image in the series "Hobby Horse Men" that caught my eye. I feel that Dawson capture the expression on the woman's face with using only suggestive lines for her eye that would be visible. He also uses limited areas of shading, still allowing the woman to look realistic in a way. I believe the best part of this print is the drastic contrast in darks and lights. Dawson truly makes your eye move around the page to examine the dark and light shadows that exist on and around the woman.

I also enjoy the way Dawson made the dress look so realistic. It is obvious that this woman is wearing an elegant, expensive dress with a great deal of material. Again, the contrast of lights and darks, along with the overall preciseness of the lines make the shall or scarf look crumpled up around the woman's arms. However, Dawson also uses shape, edgy lines. This could be due to the image he is portraying or the type of work that this is. The stiff lines almost give the woman a sort-of stiff look overall while she holds her nose up in the air as if that is the way she is feeling.

The part of this work that I like the least I would have to say is the background. Although the technique looks interesting, I do not feel that it suits this woman. It almost feels like she is this elegant woman who loves to go out and enjoy herself, while she seems to be in a dreary, dungeon-like background. However, this may be the feel that the artist was going for so if it is the message he is trying to send, the background works.

Overall, I enjoy this work and feel that it is very well done. I think that the print is very clean-cut and percise. This is the same for the other works of Dawson. None of his works are extrememly detailed, but they are very well done. The all encompass a great deal of contrast with shadows and shading which make the images pop out at you.