A Treatise on Etching

A Treatise on Etching

Since the year 1866, when the first edition of this treatise appeared, the art of etching, which was then in full course of regeneration, has gained considerably in extent. The tendencies of modern art must necessarily favor the soaring flight of this method of engraving, which has been left in oblivion quite too long. It remained for our contemporary school to accord to it those honors which the school of the first empire had denied to it, and which that of 1830 had given but timidly. At the period last named some of our illustrious masters, by applying their talent to occasional essays in etching, set an example which our own generation, expansive in its aspirations, and anxiously desirous of guarding the rights of individuality, was quick to follow. The Gazette des Beaux Arts comprehended this movement, and contributed to its extension by attracting to itself the artists who rendered themselves illustrious by the work done for its pages, while, by a sort of natural reciprocity, they shed around it the prestige of their talents. The Socit des Aqua-fortistes (Etching Club), founded in 1863 by Alfred Cadart, has also, by the united efforts of many eminent etchers, done its share towards bringing the practice of this art into notice, and has popularized it in the world of amateurs, whose numbers it has been instrumental in augmenting; while at the same time, owing to the nature of its constitution, it has given material support to the artists. Private collections have been formed, and are growing in richness from day to day. Two royal artists, King Ferdinand of Portugal and King Charles XV. of Sweden, have,[Pg 2] through their works, taken an active part in the renewal of etching; they were the happy sponsors of a publication which, under the name of L'Illustration Nouvelle, follows in the footsteps, and continues the traditions, of the Socit des Aqua-fortistes. Similar societies, organized in England and in Belgium,[1] are prospering. On the other hand, a great number of art journals, of books, and of albums, owe their success to the use made in them of etchings. This is true also of those special editions which are sumptuously printed in small numbers, and are the delight of lovers of books. ......Buy Now (To Read More)

Product details

Ebook Number: 33751
Author: Lalanne, Maxime
Release Date: Sep 17, 2010
Format: eBook
Language: English

Contributors

Translator: Koehler, S. R. (Sylvester Rosa), 1837-1900