Woman Digging
1938
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
engraving in black with charcoal
Dimensions
plate: 14.1 x 10.6 cm (5 9/16 x 4 3/16 in.) sheet: 26.1 x 20.7 cm (10 1/4 x 8 1/8 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift from Clare Calder and her sister Rachel Austin
Accession Number
2012.5.23
Art Historical Context
### Woman Digging by Robert Austin1938) Created in 1938, *Woman Digging* is a striking engraving by British artist Robert Austin, a master of the printmaking revival in early 20th-century Britain. This intimate work, measuring just 141 x 10.6 cm on the plate, captures a woman absorbed in manual labor, her form rendered with Austin's signature precision and economy of line. The medium—engraving in black ink enhanced with charcoal on a larger sheet—lends a tactile depth, blending the sharp clarity of intaglio printing with the subtle smudging of charcoal for added texture and shadow. As a print...
About the Artist
Robert Austin
Robert Sargent Austin RA PPRWS PPRE (1895–1973) was a preeminent British engraver, draughtsman, illustrator, and painter, born in Leicester, England, where his prodigious talent emerged early—at just eight years old, he exhibited with the Royal Drawing Society.) He trained first at the Leicester Municipal School of Art from 1909 to 1913, then at the Royal College of Art from 1914–1916 and 1919–192...