Mediterranean Winter
1955
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
etching and aquatint in black on wove paper
Dimensions
plate: 30.3 x 22.6 cm (11 15/16 x 8 7/8 in.) sheet: 43 x 31 cm (16 15/16 x 12 3/16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of the Richard Florsheim Art Fund
Accession Number
2001.43.11
Art Historical Context
Ynez Johnston's *Mediterranean Winter*1955) is a captivating etching and aquatint in on wove paper, 30.3 x 22.6 cm on the plate. Created during the mid-20th-century revival of American printmaking, work exemplifies Johnston's mastery of intaglio techniques. Etching allows for precise, fluid lines incised into a metal plate with acid while aquatint adds rich tonal gradations through a rosin dust process, enabling subtle shading and atmospheric depth. Together, these methods produce a textured, luminous surface ideal for evoking moody landscapes. The title hints at the paradoxical beauty of a M...
About the Artist
Ynez Johnston
Ynez Johnston (1920–2019) was an American artist celebrated for her richly textured printmaking and painting that drew on a wide range of cultural sources — from pre-Columbian art and Asian calligraphy to the landscapes of Mexico and California. Born in Berkeley, California, she studied at the University of California, Berkeley, where she later taught, and went on to build a career that spanned mo...