Location via proxy:   [ UP ]  
[Report a bug]   [Manage cookies]                

Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

From $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

Engravers and Etchers
Engravers and Etchers
Engravers and Etchers
Ebook266 pages2 hours

Engravers and Etchers

Rating: 0 out of 5 stars

()

Read preview

About this ebook

In "Engravers and Etchers," Fitz Roy Carrington offers an erudite exploration of the art forms of engraving and etching, tracing their historical evolution while analyzing the techniques and styles that define them. Carrington's prose showcases a meticulous attention to detail, reflecting both a profound appreciation and understanding of printmaking. He delves into the lives of significant artists, examining their contributions to the craft, and situating their work within broader artistic movements. This examination not only highlights individual artistry but also emphasizes the social and cultural contexts that shaped these forms, making the book a significant resource for art historians and enthusiasts alike. Fitz Roy Carrington, known for his scholarly rigor and curatorial expertise, was deeply ingrained in the art world of his time. His experiences as an artist and critic, combined with his exposure to various artistic circles, provided him with unique insights into the practices and challenges faced by engravers and etchers. Carrington's background in crafting intricate designs, coupled with his academic prowess, informs his analytical approach, lending depth to his narratives and critical assessments throughout the book. "Engravers and Etchers" is a vital read for anyone interested in the intersection of art and history. Through Carrington's keen observations, readers will gain a richer understanding of these artistic practices and their enduring influence on contemporary art. This work not only serves as an academic reference but also as an engaging narrative that will resonate with artists, historians, and art lovers alike.
LanguageEnglish
PublisherSharp Ink
Release dateJun 16, 2022
ISBN9788028201777
Engravers and Etchers

Related to Engravers and Etchers

Related ebooks

History For You

View More

Related articles

Reviews for Engravers and Etchers

Rating: 0 out of 5 stars
0 ratings

0 ratings0 reviews

What did you think?

Tap to rate

Review must be at least 10 words

    Book preview

    Engravers and Etchers - Fitz Roy Carrington

    Fitz Roy Carrington

    Engravers and Etchers

    Sharp Ink Publishing

    2024

    Contact: info@sharpinkbooks.com

    ISBN 978-80-282-0177-7

    Table of Contents

    TO THE READER

    GERMAN ENGRAVING: FROM THE BEGINNINGS TO MARTIN SCHONGAUER

    ITALIAN ENGRAVING: THE FLORENTINES

    GERMAN ENGRAVING: THE MASTER OF THE AMSTERDAM CABINET AND ALBRECHT DÜRER

    ITALIAN ENGRAVING: MANTEGNA TO MARCANTONIO RAIMONDI

    SOME MASTERS OF PORTRAITURE

    LANDSCAPE ETCHING

    LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

    TO THE READER

    Table of Contents

    When that most sensitive of American print-lovers, the late Francis Bullard, learned that I was to deliver at Harvard, each year, a course of lectures on the History and Principles of Engraving, he wrote me one of those characteristic letters which endeared him to his friends, concluding his wise counsels with these words: "Nothing original—get it all out of the books."

    In these six lectures I have endeavored to profit by his suggestion. In them there is little original: most of it is out of the books. Books, however, like Nature, are a storehouse from which we draw whatever is best suited to our immediate needs; and if in choosing that which might interest an audience, to the majority of whom engravings and etchings were an unexplored country, I have preferred the obvious to the profound, I trust that the true-blue Print Expert will forgive me. These simple lectures make no pretense of being a History of Engraving, or a manual of How to Appreciate Prints. My sole aim has been to share with my audience the stimulation and pleasure which certain prints by the great engravers and etchers have given me. If I have succeeded, even a little, I shall be happy. I would add that the lectures are printed in substantially the same form as they were delivered. Consequently they must be read in connection with the illustrations which accompany them.

    The Bibliographies which follow each chapter have been prepared by Mr. Adam E. M. Paff, Assistant in the Department of Prints at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

    FitzRoy Carrington

    Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

    June 26, 1916

    ENGRAVERS AND ETCHERS

    GERMAN ENGRAVING: FROM THE BEGINNINGS

    TO MARTIN SCHONGAUER

    Table of Contents

    WHERE were the beginnings? When were the beginnings? Germany, the Netherlands, and Italy have each claimed priority. Max Lehrs has settled these rival claims, so far as they can be settled at the present time, by locating the cradle of engraving neither in Germany, in the Netherlands, nor in Italy, but in a neutral country—Switzerland, in the vicinity of Basle—naming the

    Master of the Playing Cards

    as probably the earliest engraver whose works have come down to us. Undoubtedly this artist was not the first to engrave upon metal plates, but of his predecessors nothing is known, nor has any example of their work survived.

    The technical method of the Master of the Playing Cards is that of a painter rather than of a goldsmith. There is practically no cross-hatching, and the effect is produced by a series of delicate lines, mostly vertical, laid close together. His plates are unsigned and undated, so that we can only approximate the period of his activity. That he preceded, by at least ten years, the earliest dated engraving, the Flagellation, by the Master of 1446, may safely be assumed, since in the manuscript copy of Conrad von Würzburg’s The Trojan War, transcribed in 1441 by Heinrich von Steinfurt (an ecclesiastic of Osnabrück), there are pen drawings of figures wearing costumes which correspond exactly with those in prints by the Master of the Playing Cards in his middle period. The Master of the Playing Cards is, therefore, the first bright morning star of engraving. From him there flows a stream of influence affecting substantially all of the German masters until the time of Martin Schongauer, some of whose earlier plates show unmistakable traces of an acquaintanceship with his work.

    MASTER OF THE PLAYING CARDS. ST. GEORGE

    Size of the original engraving, 5⅞ × 5¼ inches

    In the Royal Print Room, Dresden

    MASTER OF THE PLAYING CARDS. MAN OF SORROWS

    Size of the original engraving, 7¾ × 5⅛ inches

    In the British Museum

    St. George and the Dragon is in his early manner. Here are plainly to be seen the characteristics of this first period—the broken, stratified rocks, the isolated and conventionalized plants, and the peculiar drawing of the horse, especially its slanting and half-human eyes. The Playing Cards, from which he takes his name, may safely be assigned to his middle period. The suits are made up of Flowers (roses and cyclamen), Wild Men, Birds, and Deer, with a fifth, or alternative suit of Lions and Bears. Like all the early German designers of playing cards, he has given free rein to his fancy and inventiveness. The position of the different emblems is varied for each numeral card; and each flower, wild man, bird, or beast, has an attitude and character of its own, no two being identical. No engraver has surpassed him in truthfulness and subtlety of observation and in the delineation of birds few artists have equalled him. His rendering of the growth and form of flowers would have delighted John Ruskin. In the King of Cyclamen and the Queen of Cyclamen the faces have an almost portrait-like individuality. The hands are well drawn and do not yet display that attenuation which is characteristic of nearly all fifteenth century German masters and is a noticeable feature in engravings by Martin Schongauer himself. The clothing falls in natural folds, and in the King of Cyclamen the representation of fur could hardly be bettered.

    To his latest and most mature period must be assigned the Man of Sorrows—in some ways his finest, and certainly his most moving, plate. Not only has he differentiated between the textures of the linen loin-cloth and the coarser material of the cloak; but the column, the cross with its beautiful and truthful indication of the grain of the wood, and the ground itself, all are treated with a knowledge and a sensitiveness that is surprising. The engraver’s greatest triumph, however, is in the figure of Christ. There is a feeling for form and structure, sadly lacking in the work of his successors, and his suggestion of the strained and pulsing veins, which throb through the Redeemer’s tortured limbs, is of a compelling truth.

    Chief among the engravers who show most clearly the influence of the Master of the Playing Cards is the

    Master of the Year 1446

    , so named from the date which appears in the Flagellation. His prints present a more or less primitive appearance, and were it

    Enjoying the preview?
    Page 1 of 1