The Air Pump
Print
1769 (engraved)
1769 (engraved)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Valentine Green (1739-1813) was mezzotint engraver to George III (ruled 1760-1820). Printmakers reproducing paintings used mezzotint because of its ability to create subtle gradations in tone. The printmaker applies a rocker to the surface of the printing plate to create a burr (roughened surface) that will hold ink and print a deep, even black. Different tones are then created by scraping away the burr so that it will hold varying amounts of ink. The printmaker is, in effect, scraping the image out of darkness. This made it a particularly suitable medium for rendering the dramatic lighting effects for which the painter Joseph Wright of Derby (1734-1797) was famous.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | The Air Pump (assigned by artist) |
| Materials and techniques | Mezzotint on paper |
| Brief description | Valentine Green (1739-1813) after Joseph Wright of Derby; The Air Pump; 1769; mezzotint. |
| Physical description | Print |
| Dimensions |
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| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Valentine Green (1739-1813) was mezzotint engraver to George III (ruled 1760-1820). Printmakers reproducing paintings used mezzotint because of its ability to create subtle gradations in tone. The printmaker applies a rocker to the surface of the printing plate to create a burr (roughened surface) that will hold ink and print a deep, even black. Different tones are then created by scraping away the burr so that it will hold varying amounts of ink. The printmaker is, in effect, scraping the image out of darkness. This made it a particularly suitable medium for rendering the dramatic lighting effects for which the painter Joseph Wright of Derby (1734-1797) was famous. |
| Bibliographic reference | Baker, Malcolm, and Brenda Richardson (eds.), A Grand Design: The Art of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London: V&A Publications, 1999.
|
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 29445:1 |
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| Record created | January 6, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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