Ralph Fabri (1894-1975), Americana, etching, 1948, signed and titled in pencil lower margin. Published by the Society of American Etchers. In good condition, with margins (a small spot in left margin outside of platemark, soft fold upper left, remains of prior hinging verso), 8 x 9 3/4, the sheet 10 3/4 x 13 5/8 inches, archival matting.

A fine clear impression, printed on an ivory laid paper in brownish black ink.

Americana has just about everything: Miss America, the New York skyline, factories, farms, cowboys (fighting Indians), a boxing match, the Capitol Building, art, science, literature. It was post-WWII America, and Fabri is celebrating the past and the dawn of a new era (yet to be added: highways, suburbs, TV, the internet).

At the beginning of the latest millenium Fabri’s vision was celebrated at a large show at Georgetown University entitled “Ralph Fabri: American Visionary Printmaker.” Here’s a short biography of Fabri from the show’s catalogue:

The Hungarian-born artist Ralph Fabri (1894-1975) studied as an architect before receiving his M.A. from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Budapest in 1918. He came to America in 1921 and was naturalized six years later, residing permanently in New York. Fabri became an active member of the art community, teaching at the Parsons School of Design in the late forties followed by the Newark School of Fine and Industrial Art and the National Academy School of Fine Arts. Concurrent with the latter position, he served as associate professor of art history at the City College, New York, until 1965. Fabri was an exacting and prolific printmaker, involved in several related organizations such as the Society of American Graphic Artists, the California Society of Etchers and printmakers groups in Boston and Washington.