Kerr Eby, born Tokyo, Japan 1889-died - Polo - ca. 1927 - T-Shirt

This etching shows two small mounted riders working across an open field beneath a line of trees, rendered in warm, quiet tones that hold the energy of a polo match.

Visual Elements & Composition

Warm cream dominates the sheet, with sepia brown and dark umber carrying the shadows and pale buff filling the open ground. The landscape sits within a rectangle framed by a paper margin. Two deciduous trees anchor the left side, one tall with a spreading crown and a broader, oak-like form beside it. The riders are small against the flat field, and a distant tree line closes the horizon. A dark hollow in the grassy foreground mound pulls the eye down before it travels back up toward the action.

Meaning & Symbolism

Kerr Eby, the American printmaker and illustrator, made this work in the 1920s, when organized athletics were becoming central to American social identity. Polo in that decade signaled refinement and social prestige, and Eby turns a sporting contest into a study of movement and controlled intensity. The horses and riders read as grace under pressure. Though Eby is best known for his wartime etchings, this piece shows his range across American life and his command of the etching medium.

Crafted for the Chest

A print of this scale suits a shirt, where the design sits in front of you at arm's length and reads as a whole picture. The open field and horizon line stretch across the body of the tee, so the riders stay in view as you move. Wearing it puts a quiet 1920s sporting scene on the everyday, the same easy pace Eby gave his polo players.