The Printmaker

by Bronwyn Law-Viljoen

When a reclusive printmaker dies, his friend inherits the thousands of etchings and drawings he has stored in his house over the years. Overwhelmed by the task of sorting and exhibiting this work, she seeks the advice of a curator.

What compulsion drove the printmaker to make art for four decades, and why did he so seldom show his prints?

When the curator discovers a single, sealed box addressed to a man in Zimbabwe, she feels compelled to go in search of him to present him with the package, hoping to find an answer to the enigma of the printmakers solitary life.

Bronwyn Law-Viljoen’s subtle and sophisticated novel reflects on one man’s obsessive need to make meaning through images and to find, in art, the traces of love and friendship.

Genres: South Africa

272 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2016

About the author

Bronwyn Law-Viljoen is the head of Creative Writing at the University of the Witwatersrand and the editor and co-founder of Fourthwall Books. She received her doctorate from New York University, where she taught writing and literature. She has edited books on art, design and architecture, and published essays on South African art and photography. Her short stories have appeared in New Contrast and Aerodrome. The Printmaker is her first novel.

Reviews

[Roz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel is set during multiple time periods in South Africa, ending this decade. It follows the 'life' and art work of a printmaker, a man who does intaglio printing.

One thing that made this an interesting read was learning about the printing process. As a person who had only dabbled in lithography before, there was a lot to learn. However, it was a trip through Google that actually showed the detail and possibilities of this art style, and not the writing. I think I would have got more from this book had Law-Viljeon catered to the ignorant a bit more. She explained the printing in interesting detail, but I could not understand how the ink in the cracks would get on the paper. (In lithography it works the other way around. One works with a negative image, so one cuts the parts out that are to remain white and leaves the parts that are going to be black, raised.) I might also have been put off by the excessive amount of description on odd insects and strange hats. March's art sounded strange, not valuable. (And there my ignorance of the art world is revealed.)

There was a lot to admire in the writing. But I felt that the multiple characters that narrated the novel should have had more distinctive voices. They all sounded exactly the same, making me feel that I heard the author's voice and not that of the characters.

But there were elements in this that I really did appreciate. Stephen, the Zimbabwean refugee, was a school teacher in his own country and struggling to find work as a gardener in South Africa. This is true to my own experiences, where I have met Zimbabweans doing menial manual labour for a pittance when they are highly educated with degrees. The concern about the Xenophobic attacks on foreigners was mentioned, although downplayed. I might be mistaken, but I think that someone without the knowledge of fairly recent events might have missed it completely.

Overall, I am not too sure what to make of this. It wasn't a bad read. I found it informative and it got me curious to go and learn more about the art style. But I felt that this was lacking a bit of local flavour. I could identify with some things that felt like home: the concern about crime, the products he bought, the flowers mentioned in the garden... But at the same time, it didn't quite carry the 'South Africaness' that I enjoy when reading books set here. That is probably more to do with personal taste than anything else though.

[Janita Holtzhausen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A graceful meditation on the purpose of art, love, loss and the indignities visited on refugees in South African society.

[Jude · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked quite a few things about this book. I especially enjoyed the detailed descriptions of artworks and printmaking techniques, and the references to the literary works that March and Stephen refer to and talk about. The reference to my favourite Russian poet was also a pleasant and unexpected surprise. I found the writing to be beautifully crafted and the words carefully chosen, although the rotation between the different characters and dates was rather disjointed at times. I found that I did care about what happened to March and to Stephen, but I did not care about the other characters who remained rather indistinguishable from each other, and not filled out, almost like drawings themselves. There were also numerous unanswered and tantalising questions. What was really Thea's story? And who was the absent yet often present Sol? Authors don't have to give answers however, and the story of March's life is certainly thought-provoking.

[Madri · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Printmaker is losweg gebasseer op die skrywer se eie ondervinding toe sy gevra is om kurator te wees na die dood van 'n relatief onbekende kunstenaar, Marcus Glazer. “What fascinated me about this character was his ability to continue to generate images without having an audience for
them, or having a very circumscribed audience and it was that aspect of his life that interested me” (Law-Viljoen). 'n Stadige boek wat jou verlei met taal en beeld.

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up in a second hand bookshop and bought it because I make woodcut prints (in a very beginner way) but love the process.

What a win this turned out to be.

Once you accept the first person writing style, each character has the same language and turn of phrase, you get taken on a journey of discovery of artists, beautiful perspectives of their work: Arcimboldo, Gaudier-Brzeska, Klee, Duchamp, Toyokuni, Durer, and more.

The most compelling piece is March and Stephen’s relationship.

And then to find out that March is based on Marcus Glaser.

[Lynton Burger · Rating 5 out of 5]

A masterclass in characterisation. Beautiful, lean prose. I can see why this won the Olive Schreiner prize!

[Ansie de Swardt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gentle, well-written book, moving on with its own rather peculiar impetus. Liked the characters but found them somehow similar in their first person depictions.

[Zoe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nuanced and beautifully written.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Complex, literary, with engaging detail on the subject of printmaking.

[Debbie Morgan]

I found it a little slow moving and overindulgent in the writing. Although touching in some parts, I was a bit bored.