The Bridge and the Storm, Mackinac Straits

Mezzotint printed in black ink on tan Japan laid paper, 1957.
Edition of 100, some impressions numbered, others not. This print has become very scarce, with many impressions in museum collections.
Signed and titled in pencil.
Plate: 16 ⅞ x 13 inches. 
A very fine impression in excellent condition; the faintest of mat discoloration, unobtrusive.

BRIEF COMMENTARY:

This is one of Weidenaar’s most majestic and successful compositions. It depicts the construction of the suspension bridge connecting the Upper and Lower Peninsulas of Michigan, which took more than two years to build. It remains one of the longest suspension bridges in the world. The mystique of builders working through stormy weather enabled Weidenaar to utilize the grayscale of mezzotint very successfully. Gradations of light and dark offer a dramatic rendering of this feat of engineering and show human endeavor at its most ambitious.