Soyer, Raphael. SPRINGTIME. Cole 56. Lithograph, 1938. 14 x 17 1/4 inches; 356 x 440 mm. Signed and titled in pencil. Edition of about 25. Upper right corner professionally replaced, else a very good impression in very good condition. Inscribed to "For Morris Carnovsky" in the margin just below the image.Together with The Mission and Bowery Nocturne of 1933 (Cole 27 and 28), Springtime is one of three large format lithographs in which Soyer powerfully portrayed Depression-era scenes of New York City life. Although done in the studio, it depicts Washington Square ParkA scarce and important item in Soyer's graphic oeuvre.Morris Carnovsky, 1897-1992, was a distinguished American stage and screen actor, whose long career included work with the Yiddish Theater, the Provincetown Playhouse, starring roles in Odets' "Awake and Sing" and "Golden Boy," the film "Life of Emile Zola" and acclaimed portrayals of King Lear and Shylock. He was blacklisted in 1950, but was cast by John Houseman in Ibsen's Enemy of the People.An interesting Association Copy of this rare print.
