John Sloan (1871-1951), Nude on Stairs, etching, 1930, signed in pencil lower right margin, titled in pencil center, inscribed “100 proofs” lower left [also signed in the plate lower left]. Reference: Morse 241, ninth (published) state (of 9). In very good condition, the full sheet with margins (slightest toning in margins), printed in black on a cream wove paper, 9 7/8 x 8, the sheet 14 1/2 x 11 1/2 inches, archival matting.
A superb impression, printing very black and clear.
Provenance: Collection unknown collector, stamp SN in a circle verso (not located in Lugt)
At this point in his career Sloan was experimenting with the use of lines to produce sculptural effects in his prints, drawings, and paintings, and he tried these effects first in his prints. (Some of the great prints and paintings of Rembrandt and Durer had appeared at the Metropolitan Museum in New York, and Sloan – even at this mature stage of his career – became an eager student of these artists.) Of this print he noted: “The etching Nude on Stairs of 1930 is the first important use of super-glazing with linework. There are sets of lines which define the form in light and shade, more which give it sculptural texture, and then there are top-texturing lines which attack the lights and give them greater realization than the eye can see.”
