Decoy

Decoy contains numerous details that first appeared in Jasper Johns’ earlier paintings and prints. These include the cast leg of prominent art critic Barbara Rose at upper right; fragmented stenciled color names; and the Ballantine Ale can at the center. The delicate small numerals along the bottom were from a series of etchings, and were transferred to Decoy using the actual printing plates used to make the earlier series.

This print was a technical milestone because Johns convinced the printers at ULAE to utilize their newly acquired commercial offset press to produce the multi-plate project. Offset lithography was not considered to be a fine art process, so Johns’ suggestion was surprising. It offered two main advantages: the image is not reversed as in traditional printmaking and the process is quicker, in part because lighter aluminum plates are used instead of heavy lithographic stones. As a result, Decoy is more layered and complex than would have been practical using traditional stone lithography.