(001) A Fish out of Water, 1976

The collection contains 33 prints by artist Elizabeth Delson—a representative sampling of her work in the print world from the 1960s through the 1980s. The prints are largely color and black-and-white etchings, some of which Delson used in conjunction with an inkless impression, aquatint, or embossing processes. Eight of the prints are part of her Cats Series, while the others carry themes of aquatic life, animals and plant life, bodies of water and nude models. Of particular note are An Apple A Day depicting Adam and Eve and Sun Signs which provides representations of the Zodiac signs.

The donor also provided copies of her print notebooks for the prints included in this collection. The notebooks provided information on each of her works including the processes, when they were exhibited, any awards achieved, and their collection history. The notebook entries are very detailed and establish a numbering system for her prints and paintings, which coincide with her online catalog raisonné and the container list for this collection. The description of the print processes are extensive—noting paper sizes, number of impressions, etc.—and she notes whether there were artists’ proofs made, the price she was selling the prints, and exactly what part of the editions were exhibited at what galleries and when.