Esther Pressoir

From August 1927 to January 1928, Esther Pressoir bicycled through nine European countries. In this linocut, she depicts her crossing into Andorra, a mountainous country tucked between France and Spain. Her tiny, moonlit silhouette is set against jagged peaks in a landscape dotted with rooftops and a single white cross. She wears a leather jacket, skirt, and booties that seem impractical, even ludicrous for this kind of terrain. She pushes a bicycle with flattened tires but is hardly deflated herself. She presses on toward resplendent rays that illuminate the horizon, promising a comfortable bed to the weary traveler.

–Suzanne Scanlan, assistant professor, Theory and History of Art and Design (THAD), RISD