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Will Barnet was a beloved American printmaker and painter known for his stylized portraits of women, children, and cats, often modeled after his own family and pets. He was said to have dismissed any visitor to his studio if his feline did not approve of them.
Printmaking gave Barnet a wider, freer means of expression. He excelled at various printmaking techniques including lithography, intaglio, and woodcut. His style displays the influence of Renaissance painting, traditional Japanese color woodcuts, and American Pop Art. He was also inspired by Cubism and Native American art, which he collected books on.
A soliloquy is a monologue addressed to oneself, used in drama to let a character make their thoughts known to the audience. Barnet has always been firmly rooted in the American painting tradition where hints of loneliness, as well as vastness of space, have often been acknowledged as underlying themes in American art.