拍品專文
In the 1960s, George Tooker observed the world around him and voiced his concern about the dramatic changes in society though his paintings. In Voice I (1963) "Tooker has commented that 'the figures on either side of the wall are identical. The painting is about non-communication.' Shown here are the futile efforts of 'two human beings, just plain people' to communicate, separated by a barrier as thin as a door yet as impermeable as a yard of steel. We have no idea what they are trying to communicate, only that it is very important, and that the voice of one or the hearing of the other is too weak to make the message clear. The speaker is trapped in darkness, and his face expresses the urgency of the message; his hand is partly raised, as if to knock on the wall to emphasize his point and to aid in being heard. The listener, intent yet uncomprehending, has pressed an ear to the door, and placed his hand against it, too, almost as though its slightly cupped form might help him to hear better. It is a poignant picture, all the more so because we cannot imagine what is preventing them from simply walking around the partition." (T.H. Garver, George Tooker, San Francisco, California, 1992, p. 82)