Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
British Galleries, Room 56, The Djanogly Gallery

Diana asleep by a fountain

Mezzotint
ca. 1690 (designed), after 1706 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Object Type
Mezzotint is a form of tonal engraving. The engraver first creates a surface that will print solid black by roughening the surface of a copper plate with a serrated tool called a 'rocker'. This process raises a fragile burr of displaced copper which will hold a lot of printing ink. The design is then created by smoothing this burr in varying degrees to print a range of velvety tones. For white highlights, the engraver polishes the burr completely away, making the plate perfectly smooth once more, so no ink will adhere after the surface has been wiped.

Design & Designing
Robert Robinson did not invent this composition. He copied it from a Flemish engraving by Cornelis Bloemaert (1603-1684) of a fresco by Pietro da Cortona in the Pitti Palace in Florence, painted in 1642-1644. Robinson changed the semi-circle of the engraving, which follows the lunette shape of the painting, into a rectangle.

People
John Smith (1652-1743), another printmaker who specialised in mezzotints, acquired the printing plate for this mezzotint after Robert Robinson died. John Smith added to the plate his name and the letters 'ex', an abbreviation for excudit, Latin for 'published by'. Publishers ensured that their name appeared on prints so a collector who admired a particular print would know where to buy it.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleDiana asleep by a fountain (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Mezzotint, ink on paper
Brief description
Mezzotint of Diana asleep by a fountain
Physical description
Mezzotint print on paper
Dimensions
  • Excluding mount height: 23cm
  • Excluding mount width: 30.6cm
Dimensions checked: Measured; 06/10/1999 by SP/LM
Marks and inscriptions
I. Smith ex
Gallery label
  • British Galleries: Mezzotint printing developed in The Netherlands and England after 1650. Printmakers wanted to reproduce the texture and depth of painted surfaces. This print shows the rich tones that could be achieved. The classical subject is unusual, as portraits were more common.(27/03/2003)
  • Henry Cole Wing, Level 2 This print has the words 'I Smith ex' worked into it. This indicates it was published by John Smith although the mezzotint was made by Robert Robinson. Diana was an ancient Greek goddess of hunting who was also a goddess of the moon. Her attribute (the object which clearly identifies who she is) is the crescent moon on her forehead. She is resting her right elbow on a quiver of arrows and her watchful hunting dogs lie by her feet. This mezzotint is based on an engraving by Cornelis Bloemaert of a fresco painting by Pietro da Cortona in the Palazzo Pitti in Florence. Although unsigned, the luxuriant foliage and the detail of the fountain, with a dolphin ridden by a putti spewing water, unmistakably mark this print out as Robinson's work.
Object history
Designed by Robert Robinson (active 1674-1706); published in London by John Smith (born in Northampton, 1652, died in London, 1743); based on an engraving by Cornelis Bloemaert II (1603-1684) after a design by Pietro da Cortona (1596-1669).

An impression of the engraving on which this mezzotint is based, is in the V&A collection, accession number 21126.13.
Production
About 1690, this impression after 1706
Subjects depicted
Summary
Object Type
Mezzotint is a form of tonal engraving. The engraver first creates a surface that will print solid black by roughening the surface of a copper plate with a serrated tool called a 'rocker'. This process raises a fragile burr of displaced copper which will hold a lot of printing ink. The design is then created by smoothing this burr in varying degrees to print a range of velvety tones. For white highlights, the engraver polishes the burr completely away, making the plate perfectly smooth once more, so no ink will adhere after the surface has been wiped.

Design & Designing
Robert Robinson did not invent this composition. He copied it from a Flemish engraving by Cornelis Bloemaert (1603-1684) of a fresco by Pietro da Cortona in the Pitti Palace in Florence, painted in 1642-1644. Robinson changed the semi-circle of the engraving, which follows the lunette shape of the painting, into a rectangle.

People
John Smith (1652-1743), another printmaker who specialised in mezzotints, acquired the printing plate for this mezzotint after Robert Robinson died. John Smith added to the plate his name and the letters 'ex', an abbreviation for excudit, Latin for 'published by'. Publishers ensured that their name appeared on prints so a collector who admired a particular print would know where to buy it.
Bibliographic references
  • J. E. Wessely, "John Smith Verzeichniss seiner Schabkunstblätter", Hamburg 1887, no 364
  • A. Griffiths 'Early Mezzotint Publishing in England - I, John Smith, 1652-1743' in 'Print Quarterly', vol VI, no 3 September 1989, pp. 243-257.
  • Thomas, Ben 'The Paradox of Mezzotint'; University of Kent; 2008
  • 'Early English Mezzotints: John Smith as Printmaker and Publisher', Elizabeth Miller; Prints, Drawings and Paintings Temporary Display; 8th April-8th November 1998
  • James A. Ganz 'Still Life Mezzotints by Robert Robinson', The Burlington Magazine, no 1139, vol CXL, February 1998, p. 94
Collection
Accession number
E.122-1998

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Record createdMarch 27, 2003
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