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Romare Bearden, The Family, 1975
photoetching and aquatint, Edition 156/175
Juliette Bethea
© Romare Bearden Foundation/Licensed by VAGA, New York, N.Y.

Based on a collage of varied papers, this etching is printed from multiple plates. The distinctive linear textures in the essential image are etched onto what is commonly referred to as the "key" plate; they result from Bearden's use of varied screens to create an intermediate photographic collage that then played a role in the creation of the printing plate, also using photographic techniques. The granular surfaces on additional plates result from the use of aquatint, an etching process that can imitate watercolor washes; these plates were used for the areas of color.

Copyright © National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.