»The Monster has turned out well«
Herwig Zens, The Etched Diary
The Etched Diary is the impressive result of an obsession: in 1977 the artist Herwig Zens decided to record every day of his life in writing and images with an etching needle on copper plates. He continued this project right up until his death in 2019; in 2005 he had the first 28 years printed together on a thick sheet of watercolour paper. Today, this stunning master-print is regarded as the world’s longest etching, and only three prints exist. Gerda Zens gifted one of them to the Kunsthistorisches Museum, which is now showing its copy, placing the focus on those elements of the diary that deal with the artist’s collaboration with the museum.
