Etching, engraving, drypoint and aquatint on Japan paper
USA, 1982
John Cage (1912-1992) – American composer, theorist and artist
Signed, titled and dated in pencil lower right ‘Déreau 14 John Cage 1982’
Numbered in pencil lower right ‘2 of two impressions’
From a series of 38 related color etchings
Printed by Lilah Toland at Crown Point Press, California with blind stamp lower right
Published by Crown Point Press, California, with blind stamp lower right
Full sheet printed with deckled edges
Dimensions: 18 ¼ x 24 ½ in. (46.4 x 62.2 cm.)
Literature: Lilah Toland, ‘Déreau, 1982’, John Cage Etchings 1978–1982 (Oakland, California: 1982), pp.20–1
Estimate $3,000-$4,000

Influenced by the drawings of Transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau, John Cage created thirty-eight prints for Crown Point Press, each with two impressions. Titled “Déreau” which combines the first syllable of the word “décor” with the second syllable of the surname of Thoreau, Cage uses these drawings as a type of stage set around which the other elements move. Cage used five intaglio processes in each print: drypoint straight lines, engraved curved lines, aquatint, a circular plate and photo-etched Thoreau drawings.

Executed in 1982, this etching, engraving, drypoint and aquatint on Japan paper is signed, titled, dated and numbered two from two impressions. From a series of 38 related color etchings, this work was printed by Lilah Toland at Crown Point Press and published by them also, with printers and publishers blindstamps. The full sheet is printed with deckled edges, measuring 18 ¼ x 24 ¼ inches. 8 in. diagonal crease upper margin from top center sheet edge to upper left corner in the middle of the large circle; slight scuffing lower left, soft crease extending 7 in. into image lower left corner, mat tape verso from previous mounting.

John Cage (American, 1912-1992)

Composer, visual artist, write and philosopher John Cage is best known for his Minimalist music compositions characterized by the use of chance. Born in Los Angeles, Cage studied with Austrian-born composer Arnold Schönberg, working together at the University of South California and the University of California, Los Angeles. While at UCLA in the late 1930s, Cage began creating musical accompaniments for dance and choreography. Shortly after, Cage moved to Seattle where he met renowned dancer and choreographer Merce Cunningham who would become his life partner and collaborator. Cage was also associated with a wide variety of other well-known artists including Robert Rauschenberg, Marcel Duchamp and Jackson Pollock. The composition “4’33”” (1952) is considered Cage’s best-known work, composed of environmental sounds from an audience who believes it is listening to silence. By the late 1960s Cage also explored other media, including paintings, printmaking, photography and writing.

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