Anita In Amber Printmaking By Jerry Di Falco

Year:

Medium:

Etching Print

Size - (USA):

9 W x 12 H x 1 D (inches)

Size - (metric):

22.9 W x 30.5 H x 2.5 D (centimeters)

Theme:

Erotic

Edition:

Original

Artwork ID:

616805

PDF Copy:

Artwork Info Sheet (PDF)

Artwork Description:

THE PRICE OF THIS ETCHING INCLUDES A GOLD PAINTED WOOD FRAME WITH GLASS AND ACID FREE MAT. THE FRAME MEASURES 12 INCHES HIGH BY 9 INCHES WIDE. THE WHITE MAT CONTAINS A GOLD INNER TRIMMED EDGE. THE ARTWORK ARRIVES WIRED AND READY TO HANG ON YOUR WALL. A WALL HOOK AND NAIL ARE INCLUDED. The studio techniques of aquatint, intaglio, drypoint, and Chine Collé were employed to create this hand printed etching by Jerry Di Falco. Its title refers to the German Cabaret dancer and performance artist, Anita Berber, born in Dresden on June 10, 1899 - died in 1928. Di Falco’s work on paper is part of his “TEARS FOR BERLIN” series, a collection of etchings devoted to The German Cabaret Art Movement of the 1920-1933. Di Falco executed this etching on a zinc etching plate, four inches wide by five inches high, or 10.160cm by 12.700cm, and printed on RivesBFK white etching paper. The wood and glass frame with archival mat is 9 inches wide by 12 inches high. This etching is part of a portfolio of FIVE EDITIONS, and moreover, the editions are limited to only five etchings each. This particular etching from the FORTH EDITION used a unique blend of French, oil base color inks. The artist employed a mulberry bark paper from Thailand, which was infused with Japanese Kozo threads and treated with methylcellulose. The artist printed and published all etching editions at the Center for Works on Paper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The 1922 photo Di Falco used for this work was shot by the German fashion photographer, Madame D’Ora, a. k. a. Dora Kallumusin 1922. Berlin was the fundamental world center during this period for avant-garde and Dadaist performance art. Political satire, inherent in the scripts, added an artistic edge to the entertainment aspects of CABARET. In addition, Anita Berber was one of Germany’s most infamous dancers. She loved cocaine and frequented nightspots with her pet monkey. This gained her a colorful reputation, as well as her nude performances, lesbian affairs, and S and M stage themes. Her second marriage to Dadaist cabaret artist, Sebastian Droste, caused both scandal and heartache. The marriage ended after Droste stole her jewels to finance his relocation to New York City. In 1924 Berber attended a performance by American dancer Henri Chatin-Hoffman in Berlin. They fell in love and married two weeks later. In October 1925, the duo began a nationwide tour of a collaborative production, and it was whilst they were in Düsseldorf that the artist Otto Dix painted his notorious portrait of Berber. In the summer of 1926, Anita and Henri were on tour with their new production “Dances of Sex and Ecstasy”. Whilst in Zagreb, Anita publicly insulted the King of Yugoslavia and was imprisoned for six weeks. After this, both Anita and Henri returned to Berlin quite poor and began performing again in the cabaret circuit.

Artwork Keywords:   Original Printmaking

Materials:   Etching Prints