This is an original hand signed wood engraving by American artist Clare Leighton. The title of this work is "Tobacco Loopers", created and printed in 1942. This proof is editioned as 13/50, The image measures 7 1/2X5 1/2 inches. Although originally from England Leighton relocated to America in 1939. As a well known illustrator she negotiated with The Macmillan Company to create a book about the American South: a region that had fascinated her since her earliest visits to this country. Southern Harvest, published in 1942, records her graphic and written impressions of the rural customs and agricultural rites that were still functioning in an increasingly industrialized South. As was her custom, Leighton traversed the region to make on-the-spot observations for her prints. Her rhythmic, elongated style elegantly describes the movements of cotton pickers and tobacco loopers as well as scenes of community in which neighbors congregate to help shuck corn or quilt. Leighton confessed in the book's introduction that she had created it, in part, to fulfill her own need to become rooted in the American continent. It is rare to find one of this series hand signed by the artist.
