Soyer, Raphael (American, born Russia, 1899-1987). BACKSTAGE. Cole 43, Gettings 43. Etching and drypoint, c. 1937. Edition size not known, but likely only about 25, according to Soyer as told to Gettings. Signed in pencil, lower right, and stamped "Federal Art Project/NYC WPA," lower left. 8 3/8 x 6 7/8 inches (image), 13 3/4 x 11 3/4, sheet. Thematically similar to the artist's lithograph "The Team," Cole 23, Gettings 42, but with the addition of the two figures at left (the man in the doorway appears to be a self-portrait). Soyer commented to Gettings in 1982, "I think it is the only complete drypoint I ever made." Soyer did several prints under the auspices of the WPA's Federal Art Project, all in small editions, all now rare. In excellent condition.
