Piazza San Marco #2

New York City-born artist Irving Amen (1918–2011) is broadly remembered for his woodcut prints. Amen began drawing at a young age. He once told a reporter, "I discovered art at four years old," adding, "I missed the first four years. I guess I messed around." When Amen was 14, he began studying at the Pratt Institute on a scholarship. He idolized Michelangelo's draftsmanship and, like the Renaissance master, spent years perfecting his drawing skills through the study of both live models and Michelangelo's works.

After serving in the armed forces as a photographer and mural painter, Amen returned to NYC and opened a studio in Greenwich Village, followed later by a larger one in the Garment District. The New School for Social Research hosted his first exhibition of woodcuts, and the Smithsonian held his second in 1949.

In 1953, Amen traveled to Italy, where he was inspired to create a series of 11 woodcuts, eight etchings, and numerous oil paintings depicting various Italian cities. The Dorsky holds two of his woodcuts, including Piazza San Marco #2, featured here. As is evident in the print, Amen frequently applied different colored inks to the raised portions of his woodcuts, an exacting process. He used multiple color blocks to replicate the emblematic features of Venice’s famous piazza. 

Amen had a successful career and taught printmaking and sculpture at several institutions, including his alma mater, Pratt. Interestingly, like his idol Michelangelo, Amen became a member of the Accademia delle Arti del Disegno. Amen continued lecturing until he retired to Boca Raton, FL, where he resided until his death in 2011.