ALARM CEASE REPAIR PEPEAT
The prints to the right and left, half-laurel #1 and #2, have the first elements etched on this plate, before the 18 handsakes and the treaty table. I came across the text and corresponding stylized laurel motif in an old Washington Post clipping. The printed element corresponded with articles considered “Appreciations” in the obituary section. I was interested in the connection to death but also the word’s connection to accumulation, as in appreciation of wealth. The inclusion of the laurels as a stand in for achievements also seemed important as it related to what I was thinking about military accomplishment and the overall wealth gained in warfare at the cost of lives.
The print in the middle here is literally a collection of all 18 handshakes in the series on the wall to the right. Each of the handshakes were printed on this single sheet of paper during the process of making the larger series. The impressions are lighter in tone because no additional ink was wiped into the plate before printing (this is called a ghost print).