Rhabdomancie

Yves Tanguys Rhabdomancie from 1947 is a color etching on white wove paper that exemplifies the French Surrealist painters approach to printmaking, in which the biomorphic forms and infinite spaces of his paintings are translated into the graphic medium with a fidelity that preserves the uncanny quality of the painted image. Rhabdomancie, which refers to divination by means of a rod or wand, identifies the subject as a divinatory practice that connects the Surrealist interest in the unconscious and the irrational to the ancient tradition of seeking hidden knowledge through magical means. Tanguy, who was one of the founding members of the Surrealist movement and the painter who developed the most consistent and recognizable style of Surrealist landscape, produced etchings throughout his career that translate the biomorphic forms and infinite spaces of his paintings into the linear medium of etching, creating prints that are simultaneously reproductions of his painted compositions and independent works of graphic art. The color etching technique, which requires multiple plates to be printed in precise registration to create the colored image, allows Tanguy to reproduce the subtle color harmonies and atmospheric effects of his paintings with a fidelity that approaches the visual quality of the original. The year 1947 places this etching in the period of Tanguys American exile, when he was living in Connecticut and producing some of his most accomplished paintings and prints.

Tanguys etchings are significant contributions to the history of Surrealist printmaking, and Rhabdomancie demonstrates the translation of his painted biomorphic landscapes into the graphic medium with a fidelity that preserves the uncanny quality of the original. The etching influenced the development of Surrealist printmaking and the broader tradition of graphic art that explores the unconscious.

A 1947 color etching by Tanguy on white wove paper titled Rhabdomancie (divination by rod), translating the biomorphic forms and infinite spaces of his Surrealist paintings into the graphic medium with color fidelity and the uncanny quality of dream landscapes produced during his American exile in Connecticut.