The first confirmed woodblock print in the collection — and one of the most significant discoveries for understanding the full range of Sidney's practice. The title "Hardcat" is written in Sidney's hand at upper left. The work is signed "Sidney T. Cothran" at lower right with "Woodcut" noted, and numbered "3/6" — the third impression of an edition of six, confirming this is a multiple rather than a unique object.
The composition is built from the characteristic vocabulary of woodcut: large black forms carved from the block, the wood grain occasionally visible in the printed areas, the white lines where the wood was cut creating the internal drawing. The subject is abstract — a complex arrangement of curved and angular forms in black that suggest both a figure and a mechanical device: a large curved form at the left reads as a shoulder or a hull, rectangular geometric forms at center suggest machinery or architecture, and flowing curved elements at upper right introduce organic counterpoint.
The composition fills the page with maximum contrast — dense black areas against the warm cream of the paper — creating the high-contrast drama that woodcut achieves uniquely among print media. The internal white lines within the black areas give the forms their texture and direction.
The title "Hardcat" is mysterious. Is it a title for the figure/form depicted? A studio nickname? A category? It is one of the few Sidney titles that seems entirely personal and unexplained.
The existence of a woodcut edition raises a fundamental question: how many prints did Sidney make? Are there other editions? Other prints? This discovery opens an entire practice we have not yet seen.