The Flight

Art Historical Context

**The Flight** by Moriz Melzer created around 1912, captures the innovative spirit of early 20-century printmaking. This striking color monotype—measuring 33.6 × 48.2 cm on its sheet—was produced by applying pigments directly to a smooth plate and transferring them in a single pull to delicate thin Japanese paper. Beneath lies a coated paper layer, affixed to a larger black wove support sheet48.4 × 66.8 cm), enhancing and visual drama. Monotypes like this bridge painting and print, yielding unique impressions with painterly textures impossible in traditional editions. Melzer's choice of Japanese paper highlights its prized qualities: thin yet strong, it absorbs color vividly while allowing subtle transparencies, a nod to cross-cultural artistic exchanges popular in Europe's avant-garde circles before World War I. Housed in the National Gallery of Art's CG-E department as a gifted print from Ruth Cole Kainen, *The Flight* exemplifies experimental techniques that pushed print boundaries, evoking movement and ephemerality in its title and medium. Visitors will appreciate how this work's layered construction preserves its luminous hues, inviting close inspection of its one-of-a-kind vibrancy—a testament to Melzer's mastery amid modernism's rise.