The Gale

Sybil Andrews

1930 · Color linocut on Japanese paper · Drawings and Prints

The Gale is likely set in a town or urban site where nature’s strength and dynamism—portrayed here in the form of blustery winds and rain—is shown as something dramatic but also rather quotidian. The power of the natural elements is indicated through the swirling blue forms and dotted lines, as well as through the figures’ stances as they brace against the force of the winds. Anchored by heavy black footwear, the figures are nearly hidden by their umbrellas, which echo the forms of their own curved postures and the wind’s energy while also recalling the crescent-shaped curves Andrews used in Straphangers and Rush Hour, made during this same period. Despite the dramatic weather, the people appear to be more inconvenienced than endangered or awestruck.

Artist

Sybil Andrews

Date

1930

Medium

Color linocut on Japanese paper

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Purchase, Leslie and Johanna Garfield Gift, Lila Acheson Wallace, Charles and Jessie Price, and David T Schiff Gifts, The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, Dolores Valvidia Hurlburt Bequest, Peco Foundation and Friends of Drawings and Prints Gifts, and funds from various donors, 2019