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The work stands at the intersection of Matisse Mesnil’s practice of working on metal and printmaking. The plates were produced by the artist using blacksmith tools and printed by the master printer Gianluca Craca. Conceived as an investigation into the variability of the engraved trace and its intrinsic lack of fixed authorship, the series develops through subtle shifts in surface texture and printing density, generating images suspended between presence and erasure.
This attention is reflected in the restrained chromatic range and in the persistent focus on elemental gestures such as scratching and engraving, extended also to the treatment of the sheet, its edges, and the relationship between image, support, and container. The resulting works are characterised by softened contrasts and blurred definition, where the material process remains visibly active within the image itself.
5 drypoints on Hahnemühle Natural White 350 gsm paper (plate: 50 × 70 cm; paper: 52 × 71 cm)
Bespoke archival case clad in Takeo Satogami Charcoal 116 gsm Japanese paper featuring an engraved and inked plate on the cover (closed: 53.5 × 74 cm; open: 111.5 cm)
Signed and numbered by the artist
Edition of 11
2026
