Happy New Year! Artists have long marked the occasion by sending original prints to their friends and family. In this example by German sculptor and printmaker Renée Sintenis (1888–1965), the pup looks exhausted by the festivities. The artist took advantage of drypoint’s ability to create a raised ragged edge to capture ink (known as the “burr”) to describe the dog’s furry coat, the tufts on its ears, and the bright expression in its eyes. Sintenis made this drypoint sometime in the mid-twentieth century, but it is tempting to see the scruffy dog as a symbol for the chaotic year of 2021. Here’s to smoother sailing in 2022!
—Mary Weaver Chapin, Curator of Prints and Drawings
Renée Sintenis (German, 1888–1965), Dog (New Year’s Greeting Card), mid-20th century. Drypoint on paper. Gift of Mrs. Thomas C. Colt, Jr., 51.197
