JAMES
SWANN:
Holding
the Line
by Mary Bones
James Swann was one of the most respected printmakers
in the Midwest for almost a half century. From 1931 through
the mid-1960s he produced more than 250 graphic works in
the form of etchings, aquatints, drypoints and lithographs. He
created illustrations for newspapers and countless drawings-
an activity that continued until his death in 1985. In the
publication James Swann: In Quest of a Printmaker Joseph S.
Czestochowski wrote of Swann’s creative legacy:
As a perceptive artist, he created works of poetic
printmaking, with an extraordinary sensitivity to his subject
matter. As an accomplished draftsman, he merged a
sensitivity for compositional design with his own personal
expression to create poignant images that encapsulate his
times .
8 BIG BEND GALLERIES AND ARTISTS / 2020
S
wann had moved to Chicago from Texas in
1936 for what he thought would be a six-
month apprenticeship in the studio of
Morris Hobbs, however he remained there
the rest of his life. He became the secretary-treasurer
of the Chicago Society of Etchers and Prairie Print
Makers. Awards for his works include the Habersham
prize by the Southern Print Makers in 1939, the
Chapman Prize by the Southern Art League in 1936
and the Chicago Society of Etchers award for 1940.
James Swann was the youngest of eight children
born on a farm near Merkel, Texas in 1905. Under the
tutelage of a sister, he worked on his art and carried this
interest with him when he enrolled at Sul Ross State
Teachers College. Swann studied at Sul Ross from 1925
through 1927. There he received instruction from Anna
Elizabeth Keener and Elizabeth Keefer. Both women
were recognized printmakers who trained at the School
of Art Institute of Chicago. Keener studied block
printing with Birger Sandzen and etching under Paulus
and Bertha Jacques. Keefer specialized in etching at the
Art Students League of New York and assisted Joseph
Pennell.
Elizabeth Keener was the first instructor that Swann
studied under and accounts indicate that she played
some role in his work reflecting regional matter.
Elizabeth Keefer, who replaced Keener in 1926, had a
greater impact on Swann. Swann accompanied Keefer
on numerous road and field trips. He created the
majority of illustrations for the 1926 and 1927 Sul Ross
yearbooks The Brand. In the 1927 yearbook, both he
and Keefer created illustrations that poked fun at each
other.
James Swann left Sul Ross before graduating and
worked as a commercial artist with Southwest
Engraving in Fort Worth and became the manager of
the Amarillo office from 1927-1932. There he made his
first etching in Margaret Seewald’s studio in 1931. He
transferred to the Dallas office the following year and
continued his studies with Frank Klepper. By 1936 he
arrived in Chicago and there launched his career.