New Ground: Jacob Samuel and Contemporary Etching

October 29, 2023 – March 16, 2024

The Museum of Modern Art

The Museum of Modern Art announces New Ground: Jacob Samuel and Contemporary Etching, a focused exhibition on the work of master printer and publisher Jacob Samuel (American, b. 1951). On view from October 29, 2023, through March 16, 2024, the exhibition highlights Samuel’s championing of the foundational printing technique of etching, his innovative approach to collaborating with contemporary artists, and works that push the limits of the medium. MoMA began acquiring works published by Jacob Samuel in 1988 and, three decades later, it holds his entire catalogue of more than 60 projects. New Ground will selectively draw from this expansive body of work by a diverse range of artists, including Mona Hatoum, Rebecca Horn, Jannis Kounellis, Wangechi Mutu, Barry McGee, and Christopher Wool.

Over the course of four decades, Samuel collaborated with more than 60 artists, traveling extensively to do so. Through a traditional but maximally flexible approach, he was driven to prove that etching could be a successful contemporary medium. The exhibition will draw from a range of these collaborative projects. For example, Samuel made it possible for the artist Rebecca Horn to avoid working in reverse, generally considered a requirement in printmaking, by printing her delicate webs of red lines on custom-made transparent paper, which was ultimately inverted. Moreover, his design and use of a portable aquatint box allowed him to travel to artists’ studios, which allowed Jannis Kounellis to use sculptural processes, not easily transferred to a printshop setting, on copper etching plates. But this belief in traditional processes did not prevent him from embracing other techniques in order to achieve an artist’s vision. Works by Wangechi Mutu and Barry McGee include elements of collage, and are trimmed to the image size, without the expected borders of a printed image. Successive projects with Christopher Wool over the course of over twenty years are particular evidence of a generative partnership. New Ground will highlight Samuel’s breadth of knowledge, historical expertise, and unwavering commitment, which made him an ideal partner for artists new to the medium.

New Ground: Jacob Samuel and Contemporary Etching is organized by Esther Adler, Curator, and Margarita Lizcano Hernandez, Curatorial Assistant, Department of Drawings and Prints.

Support for the exhibition is provided by the IFPDA Foundation.

Additional funding is provided by the Annual Exhibition Fund. Leadership contributions to the Annual Exhibition Fund, in support of the Museum’s collection and collection exhibitions, are generously provided by the Sandra and Tony Tamer Exhibition Fund, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III, Jerry I. Speyer and Katherine G. Farley, Eva and Glenn Dubin, the Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, Kenneth C. Griffin, Alice and Tom Tisch, the Marella and Giovanni Agnelli Fund for Exhibitions, Mimi Haas, The David Rockefeller Council, The Contemporary Arts Council of The Museum of Modern Art, Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz, Kathy and Richard S. Fuld, Jr., The International Council of The Museum of Modern Art, Marie-Josée and Henry R. Kravis, Jo Carole and Ronald S. Lauder, and The Young Patrons Council of The Museum of Modern Art. Major contributions to the Annual Exhibition Fund are provided by The Sundheim Family Foundation.

Major funding for the publication is provided by the Riva Castleman Fund for Publications in the Department of Drawings and Prints, established by The Derald H. Ruttenberg Foundation.

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Rebecca Horn. Untitled from Tailleur de Coeur, 1998. Etching and aquatint with chine collé and hand additions from a portfolio of twelve etching and aquatints with chine collé; and sixteen letterpress prints with artist’s text. Plate: 7 1/4 × 6 5/16″ (18.4 × 16.1 cm); sheet: 18 15/16 × 15 13/16″ (48.1 × 40.1 cm). Acquired through the generosity of John Baldessari, Catie and Donald Marron, and Mary M. and Sash A. Spencer. The Museum of Modern Art, New York. © 2022 Rebecca Horn / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VG Bild-Kunst, Germany

Wangechi Mutu. Untitled from Eve, 2006. Etching and aquatint with collage additions from a portfolio of five etchings (two with aquatint and collage additions, one with collage additions) and three aquatints (two with collage additions). Composition (irreg): 8 9/16 x 5 1/2″ (21.7 x 14 cm); sheet: 10 7/16 x 7 7/8″ (26.5 x 20 cm). Linda Barth Goldstein Fund. The Museum of Modern Art, New York. © 2022 Wangechi Mutu

Barry McGee. Untitled from Drypoint on Acid, 2006. Etching and aquatint with chine collé and collage addition from a portfolio of seven drypoints with chine collé (three with collage additions), one drypoint and aquatint with chine collé and collage additions, one etching with chine collé and spraypaint additions, and one etching and aquatint with chine collé and collaged screenprint additions. Composition and sheet: 7 13/16 x 6 3/8″ (19.8 x 16.2 cm). Ann and Lee Fensterstock Fund. The Museum of Modern Art, New York. © 2022 Barry McGee

Jannis Kounellis. Untitled from 1999, 1999. One from a portfolio of twelve etching, drypoint, and aquatints with chiné colle (one with blind embossing). Plate: 5 5/16 × 7 5/8″ (13.5 × 19.4 cm); sheet: 13 3/4 × 15 1/8″ (35 × 38.4 cm). Acquired through the generosity of John Baldessari, Catie and Donald Marron, and Mary M. and Sash A. Spencer. The Museum of Modern Art, New York. © 2022 Jannis Kounellis

Charline von Heyl. Untitled from Black Sun: The Brief Transit and Violent Eclipse of Harry Crosby, 2013. One from a portfolio of eight etchings with drypoint, roulette, aquatint, and chine collé. Plate: 7 13/16 × 6 7/8″ (19.9 × 17.4 cm); sheet: 16 15/16 × 15″ (43 × 38.1 cm). Acquired through the generosity of John Baldessari, Catie and Donald Marron, and Mary M. and Sash A. Spencer. The Museum of Modern Art, New York. © 2022 Charline von Heyl

Mona Hatoum. Untitled from hair there and every where, 2004. One from a portfolio of ten etchings with chine collé. Plate: 7 7/8 x 6 7/8″ (20 x 17.5 cm); sheet: 16 x 14″ (40.6 x 35.6 cm). Carol and Morton H. Rapp Fund. The Museum of Modern Art, New York. © 2022 Mona Hatoum

Jonas Wood. Untitled from 8 Etchings, 2014. One from a portfolio of eight etchings with chine collé. Plate: 8 3/4 × 7 13/16″ (22.3 × 19.9 cm); sheet: 15 15/16 × 13 15/16″ (40.5 × 35.4 cm). Acquired through the generosity of John Baldessari, Catie and Donald Marron, and Mary M. and Sash A. Spencer. The Museum of Modern Art, New York. © 2022 Jonas Wood

Installation view of New Ground: Jacob Samuel and Contemporary Etching, on view at The Museum of Modern Art from October 29, 2023, through March 16, 2024. Photo: Jonathan Dorado

New Ground: Jacob Samuel and Contemporary Etching

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