In the mid 1950s, Manfred Schwartz created a limited edition series of hand-pulled stone lithographs depicting performers of the Medrano Cirque. He created the lithographs at the famed Mourlot Studios in Paris, France. The performers included opera singers dressed in elaborate clown costumes, acrobats engaged in daring feats, and jugglers deftly tossing balls into the air. A realistic photograph could carry no more truth than Manfred’s semi-abstract figures. One gets a sense of the delightful joy that Manfred must have felt as he watched the circus and made sketches which he would later turn into paintings and lithographs.

The Ring captures the excitement of two acrobats twirling in a ring high above the ground as a third acrobat climbs a rope to join the spectacle.

The Ring was created in four different color variations:
The Ring I: Gray background with black, purple and green stripes
The Ring II: Gold background with black, orange and yellow stripes
The Ring III: Gray background with black, brown and purple stripes
The Ring IV: Rust background with black, orange and yellow stripes

The Ring III is in the permanent collection of The Museum of Modern Art in New York.

About Hand-Pulled Stone Lithographs
A hand-pulled lithograph is made by drawing on a flat surface with wax-based crayons or greasy ink. The design is set with a solution of acid and gum arabic. The flat surface is then wetted with water and rolled with ink, which adheres only to the drawing. A paper is then pressed to the flat surface and carefully removed by hand. A separate drawing, wetting, inking and pressing is necessary for each color.