Leaves of Grass

Art Historical Context

**Leaves of Grass** is a soft-ground etching in green by Robert Allan Cale, created between 1926 and 1950. This print belongs to the National Gallery of Art’s distinguished Rosenwald Collection, a renowned holding of works on paper that underscores the importance of printmaking in American museum collections. Soft-ground etching uses a pliable wax coating on the metal plate rather than a hard ground. This allows the artist to transfer delicate textures—such as the veins of leaves or the fine blades of grass—directly onto the plate, producing a more organic, tactile quality than traditional et...