Warrington Colescott A Wild West: Wagon Train 1969 Signed Lithograph

Warrington Colescott
A Wild West: Wagon Train – 1969
Print – Lithograph 29.5” x 22.5”
Edition: Signed in pencil, dated and marked edition proof 5
Unframed in Very Good Condition

An Edition’s Proof (EP) is a number marking which appears on certain print editions. This is outside the regular edition, but printed at the same time of the regular edition from the same plates without changes.

Working in that area which he calls “..that black zone between tragedy and high comedy, where with a little pull or push one way or the other you can transmute screams into laughter…” Colescott examines the society of today, its virtues and its inequities. To strengthen satire, he juxtaposes humor and violence; to reinforce a comment on a current situation, he makes use of historical reference.

The prints show his mastery of numerous technical printing processes. Employing additive and subtractive techniques, the final result is a printed collage. He uses various methods to apply color, relying on relief and spot inking, careful wiping, and the use of stencil techniques to achieve proper color density, balance and registration.

The humor is bittersweet; the images are thought-provoking, the quality of the printmaking is outstanding.