“I’m going to do small-format black and white, and if nobody likes it, I don’t care. What I do is hardcore, extreme etching.”
—Jacob Samuel
With a traditional but maximally flexible approach, master printer and publisher Jacob Samuel was driven to prove that etching could be a successful and relevant contemporary medium; he would accomplish this goal through Edition Jacob Samuel, which published a range of collaborative projects with over 60 diverse and influential contemporary artists. Recently retired following an illustrious 48-year career, Samuel made a name for himself with his unconventional, often portable workshop that enabled him to bring the rigor and depth of old master etching to spaces beyond his printshop in Santa Monica. At the core of his practice as a master printer, Samuel understood that artists often work best and most naturally in their own studios while maintaining his dedication to etching and the physicality of its materials.
“I’m trying to emulate a level of craft that’s important to me. Otherwise, it’s just more junk.”
—Jacob Samuel
These intimate and skillful collaborations, in which Samuel would often be immersed in the artist’s life over the course of their time together, resulted in beautifully deep, spectral, and detailed etchings that reflected the artist’s overall practice, whether their background was in painting, sculpture, performance, or music. Samuel’s breadth of knowledge, historical expertise, and unwavering commitment made him an ideal partner for artists new to the practice of etching. “It’s all about honoring the spirit of the artist. It’s their work. It’s about actualizing their work and the medium that I know,” Samuels declared. “My goal is to leave no fingerprints. All you see if the artist’s work. I’m just another pencil. I’m just another brush. But I want the pencil to be sharpened really well.”
Samuels is the subject of the current exhibition New Ground: Jacob Samuel and Contemporary Etching at the Museum of Modern Art, an institution which holds Edition Jacob Samuel’s entire catalogue. On view through March 23, 2024, the exhibition draws from Samuel’s expansive body of work to highlight his innovative approach to collaborating with contemporary artists, his career-defining commitment to etching, and the resulting works that push the limits of the traditional medium.