Yorkshire

Edward Alexander Wadsworth

1920 (dated 1921) · Woodcut · Drawings and Prints

Like many of his contemporaries, Wadsworth adopted a different artistic style during the interwar period. Whereas Yorkshire Village, with its fragmented and faceted forms, embodies his Vorticist style, Yorkshire shows a more representational aesthetic and approach. In addition to the Black Country, Wadsworth depicted northern British towns, such as Yorkshire, where he had a personal connection. In this print, industry is still present—chimney stacks and smoke remain visible—yet it appears to be less disruptive than in the Black Country pieces, with industrial elements even assimilated into the town. Houses, reduced to geometric shapes, are tightly compressed into interlocking angled rows. Yorkshire can also be read as an elegiac commentary on Britain after the war, an impression reinforced by the shrouded figures on the steps.

Artist

Edward Alexander Wadsworth

Date

1920 (dated 1921)

Medium

Woodcut

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