Study of Valley + Water

Norman Ackroyd

British printmaker Norman Ackroyd is known for his haunting images of cityscapes and landscapes that emerge, ghost-like, from moody atmospheres. In “Study of Valley + Water,” he has chosen an unusual format, vignetting the scene within an oval frame as if to present this slice of valley and glistening water like a portrait. As well, he has moved away from his traditional monotone palette to provide a sense of spring or summer in a northern territory, such as the islands of Scotland, where the color of the sun-touched hillside grass pushes through the mist of an early morning.