View of the Capitol at Washington in 1892

Studio Antiques has found the original engraved copper printing plate of the “Capitol at Washington” done by Max Franke in 1892. We are offering a limited edition re-strike engraving of this print, handpulled from the original plate by master printmaker Roger Bailey. It will be limited to a numbered edition of only 350 and will not be republished. Each print comes with a “Certificate of Authenticity”

Lost for over a century, the unidentified copper printing plate was found at a small Washington D.C. area auction. It was dark, tarnished and dirty but we were able make out the figure of Freedom on the dome of the Capitol Building. We bought it, not knowing if it could ever again be used to print an image. We met with Professor Roger Bailey who taught printmaking at Sara Lawrence College. He suggested trying to pull a print and over the next several months he was able to meticulously restore the plate to good condition without over-restoring it to the point that it looked new. The resulting print is a stunning genuine intaglio image of our nations Capitol in 1892.

These fine quality re-strikes are not to be confused with the normal type of “fine art” prints that are widely available from many galleries or poster stores, which are generally photo lithographs of varying quality and printed on a modern paper, often not of archival quality. The subtle look and feel of a genuine intaglio art print, on fine paper along with its plate mark just cannot be reproduced with modern methods. Each impression is crafted individually and entirely by hand, in the same manner as the copperplate printer of centuries ago.The traditional hand pulled method of printing and archival quality of the paper ensures these will far outlast normal “fine art” prints.

Plate Size: 12” x 17.75”
Sheet size:15” x 21”
Unframed

Joseph Pennell (American 1857-1926)

The Inauguration Steps, 1912

Lithograph on ivory laid paper

17 x 22 (image); 19 x 24.5 (sheet); 17.75" x 22.25" (sight); 24" x 30" (frame)

Wuerth 265

Washington D.C. series. Edition of 25. Signed on stone and in pencil and inscribed: " #2 The Inauguration Portico"

This is from a series of six lithographs made for the Century Magazine entitled "The Capitol at Washington” and described as the "East Front of the Capitol" Another example is in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Joseph Pennell was widely recognized for his illustrations and etchings, a process he began in the late 1870s.  The son of Philadelphia Quaker parents, he studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art in Philadelphia where his instructor, James Claghorn recognized and encouraged Pennell's etching talent.

From 1884 to 1917, Pennell lived primarily in Europe.  There he made scenery prints in many parts of the Continent, working in a variety of graphic media.  He also returned to America long enough to travel in the American West, and in 1912 and 1915, did scenes of San Francisco, Yosemite and the Grand Canyon, which along with twenty-three lithographs he did of the Panama Canal were purchased by the Italian government and are in the Uffizi Gallery.

Pennell completed over 1800 etchings and lithographs.   His style was strongly influenced by James Whistler, and his technique was influenced by drawings of Charles Reinhardt.  He also wrote and illustrated nearly a hundred books including a biography of Whistler.

Sources:
Falk, Peter, ed. Who Was Who in American Art 1564-1975
Hughes, Edan Milton. Artists in California 1786-1940

Manuel Robbe (French, 1872-1936)

Nocturne (ou Le Flirt)
[Merrill Chase, no. 63]*

Aquatint with etching in colors, circa 1906, on wove paper, signed in pencil in the image lower left. From the edition of about 100, with minor staining in the margins, not examined out of the frame.

Image Size: 13.5" x 17.5"
Frame Size: 24" x 27.5"

Robbe was a painter of genre scenes, a watercolorist, pastellist, engraver, designer and illustrator. He studied both at the Académie Julian and the École des Beaux Arts in Paris where he was mentored in etching and aquatint methods by Eugene Delâtre. He exhibited in Paris regularly at the Salon des Artistes Français and was awarded a bronze medal in 1900 at the Exposition Universelle in Paris. Leaving that salon in 1905, Robbe became a member of the Salon de la Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts. He chiefly worked in the medium of colored aquatint engravings in which he had become quite accomplished. He was an innovator of the experimental “à la poupée” process of printing many colors from a single plate which gave his prints a startling subtlety, each print having its own uniqueness. Robbe’s favorite themes were of scenes of Paris life, scenes of streets animated by young parisiennes of the Belle Époque and young women and children engaging in the social activities of the day. His prints were designed to be framed and hung on the wall just like oil paintings.

Source:
Benezit, E. "Dictionnaire des Peintres, Sculpteurs, Dessinateurs et Graveurs"

*Manuel Robbe's works are catalogued and described by a series of soft covered books published by Merrill Chase Galleries in 1978, 1979, and 1980. These books serve as the recognized catalogue raisonné for Robbe.

Tabletop Still Life with Fruit A lithograph by C.H. Crosby & Co., 1874, in a folk art carved frame.

Print size: 5.25” x 7.5”
Frame size (max): 10.5” x 12.5”

Augustus John: Fifty-Two Drawings

Signed, limited edition, with an introduction by Lord David Cecil. Published by George Rainbird, London (1957). Hardcover folio, 16.5 x 11.75 inches. Limited to 150 copies of which this is Number 107 with slipcase. Signed by Augustus John and Lord David Cecil and inscribed to the art collector Emily Chadbourne and signed a second time by Augustus John. The book was designed and produced by George Rainbird and Ruari McLean.The lithograph self-portrait was drawn by the artist in July, 1955 and directly printed from the plate at the Curwen Press which also printed the text. The plates were printed in photo-litho offset by Van Leer of Amsterdam. The text is printed on Abbey Mills Suede Text Antique laid. Bound by Zaehnsdorf of London in half vellum over brown paper with gilt title on spine. Lithographic plate to the top board. Very good condition; a handsome copy of an important work.

"The Grand Canal, Venice

by Ernest David Roth (Am. 1879-1964)

Drypoint on Paper, signed in pencil and in the plate and dated: "1913"
Retains the original gallery label from Frederick Keppel & Co., New York, with title, artist and an inscription reading: "Proof Printed by the Artist. 70 Proofs Only"

A painter and etcher, Roth was educated at the National Academy of Design. He was a member of numerous art societies including: Washington Watercolor Club, Allied Artists of America, National Academy, and money others. Roth also exhibited widely winning prizes on numerous occasions. Among the venues at which he exhibited were the Salmagundi Club, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Society of Independent Artists, and Corcoran Gallery. His work is held in the permanent collections of the NY Public Library, Boston Museum of Fine Art, Art Institute of Chicago and the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy. Roth is listed in "Who Was Who in American Art" by Falk.

Plate Size: 9.25 x 8.75
Frame Size: 17 x 16