And Women Must Weep

And Women Must Weep
Rockwell Kent

Artist Biography
Acquisition Number: 60.23.D
Medium: Lithograph on paper
Size: 10 1/4 x 7 5/8 in.
Date: 1937
Credit: Gift of the Estate of Miss Key E. Wenrick

Artist Rockwell Kent quickly became known as one of America's foremost illustrators, providing artwork for editions of "Moby Dick," "Beowulf," "The Canterbury Tales," "Leaves of Grass," and "Faust," among others. Kent produced wood engravings and lithographs and published several books of monologues and writings. In 1939, the magazine "Prints" conducted a survey that found Kent to be the most widely known and successful printmaker in the country. "And Women Must Weep" reflects the plight of women during war. Behind the picket fence on her right, we see the back of a man carrying a rifle and backpack and walking away, presumably to war. Kent’s human figures, which appear sparingly in his work, often signify mythic themes, such as heroism, loneliness, and individualism.