Although Douthwaite is not best known as a printmaker, lithography lends itself to a very direct translation of drawing and painting and, for that reason, has often been the medium of choice for artists working in print for the first time. The artist’s very distinctive drawn line has been made using lithographic crayon, which has a waxy consistency but can produce incredibly subtle tones and texture. Douthwaite was notable for her uninhibited and sometimes arrogant self-expression, yet The Sneer belies her deeper insecurities. Haunted by feelings of alienation throughout her life, the condescending sneer expressed by the female in this lithograph hints at the pressures Douthwaite felt in exposing her innermost thoughts and visions through her art.