Augy's Foot (greeting card for 1940–41), Second Version

Stanley William Hayter

1940 · Engraving and soft-ground etching · Drawings and Prints

The footprint of Hayter’s newborn son Augy forms the basis for this composition. To create the work, which served as both year-end holiday card and birth announcement, the artist used a burin to engrave the layered, free-flowing lines that coalesce into an image that recalls a reclining form. Using the soft-ground etching process, in which materials are pressed into a sticky wax covering the plate, he placed Augy’s small foot onto the plate’s surface, leaving an indexical trace of the baby’s body. The impression of the shape and texture of the foot was then transferred to the exposed surface of the zinc plate through acid bite.

Artist

Stanley William Hayter

Date

1940

Medium

Engraving and soft-ground etching

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Gift of the Estate of John Taylor Arms, 1955