AUTHOR, ILLUSTRATOR, AND PUBLISHER.
Let us now consider shortly the Author, the Illustrator, and the
Publisher, and their influence on the appearance and production of a
book. If it be impossible in these days (and, in spite of the efforts of
Mr. William Morris and others, it seems to be impossible) to produce a
genuine book in all its details, it seems worth considering in what way
the author can stamp it with his own individuality; also to what extent
he is justified in making use of modern appliances.
How far, then, may the author be said to be responsible for the state of
things just quoted? Theoretically, he is the man of taste and culture
_par excellence_; he is, or should be, in most cases, the arbiter, the
dictator to his publisher, the chooser of style. The book is his, and it
is his business to decide in what form his ideas should become
concrete; the publisher aiding his judgment with experience, governing
the finance, and carrying out details. How comes it then that, with the
present facilities for reproducing anything that the hand can put upon
paper, the latter-day nineteenth-century author is so much in the hands
of others as to the appearance of his book? It is because the so-called
educated man has not been taught to use his hands as the missal-writers
and authors of mediaeval times taught themselves to use theirs. The
modern author, who is, say, fifty years old, was born in an age of
"advanced civilisation," when the only method of expression for the
young was one--"pothooks and hangers." The child of ten years old, whose
eye was mentally forming pictures, taking in unconsciously the facts of
perspective and the like, had a pencil tied with string to his two first
fingers until he had mastered the ups and downs, crosses and dashes, of
modern handwriting, which has been accepted by the great, as well as the
little, ones of the earth, as the best medium of communication between
intelligent beings; and so, regardless of style, character, or
picturesqueness, he scribbles away! So much for our generally straggling
style of penmanship.
There is no doubt that the author of the future will have to come more
into personal contact with the artist than he has been in the habit of
doing, and that the distinction I referred to in the first chapter,
between illustrations which are to be (1) records of facts, and (2)
works of art, will have to be more clearly drawn.
Amongst the needs in the community of book producers is one that I only
touch upon because it affects the illustrator:--That there should be an
expert in every publishing house to determine (1) whether a drawing is
suitable for publication; and (2) by what means it should be reproduced.
The resources of an establishment will not always admit of such an
arrangement; but the editors and publishers who are informed on these
matters can easily be distinguished by the quality of their
publications. By the substitution of process blocks for wood engravings
in books, publishers are deprived to a great extent of the fostering
care of the master wood engraver, to which they have been accustomed.
Amongst the influences affecting the illustrator, none, I venture to
say, are more prejudicial than the acceptance by editors and publishers
of inartistic drawings.
It would be difficult, I think, to point to a period when so much bad
work was produced as at present. The causes have already been pointed
out, the beautiful processes for the reproduction of drawings are
scarcely understood by the majority of artists, publishers, authors, or
critics. It is the _misuse_ of the processes in these hurrying days,
which is dragging our national reputation in the mire and perplexing the
student.
The modern publisher, it may be said without offence, understands the
manufacture and the commerce of a book better than the art in it. And
how should it be otherwise? The best books that were ever produced, from
an artistic point of view, were inspired and designed by students of art
and letters, men removed from the commercial scramble of life, and to
whom an advertisement was a thing unknown! The ordinary art education of
a publisher, and the multitude of affairs requiring his attention, unfit
him generally, for the task of deciding whether an illustration is good
or bad, or how far--when he cheapens the production of his book by using
photographic illustrations ("snap-shots" from nature)--he is justified
in calling them "art." The deterioration in the character of book
illustration in England is a serious matter, and public attention may
well be drawn to it.
Here we look for the active co-operation of the author. The far-reaching
spread of education--especially technical art education--is tending to
bring together, as they were never brought before in this century, the
author and the illustrator. The author of a book will give more
attention to the appearance of his pages, to the decorative character of
type and ornament, whilst the average artist will be better educated
from a literary point of view; and, to use a French word for which there
is no equivalent, will be more _en rapport_ with both author and
publisher.
For the illustrator by profession there seems no artistic leisure; no
time to do anything properly in this connection.
"It is a poor career, Blackburn," said a well-known newspaper
illustrator to me lately (an artist of distinction and success in his
profession who has practised it for twenty years), "you seldom give
satisfaction--not even to yourself."
"It is an _ideal career_," says another, a younger man, who is content
with the more slap-dash methods in vogue to-day--and with the income he
receives for them.
Referring again to the question in the _Athenaeum_, "Why is not drawing
for the press taught in our Government schools of art?" I think the
principal reasons why the art of illustration by the processes is not
generally taught in art schools are--
(1) drawing for reproduction requires more personal teaching than is
possible in art classes in public schools; (2) the art masters
throughout the country, with very few exceptions, _do not understand the
new processes_--which is not to be wondered at.
It is not the fault of the masters in our schools of art that students
are taught in most cases as if they were to become painters, when the
only possible career for the majority is that of illustration, or
design. The masters are, for the most part, well and worthily occupied
in giving a good groundwork of knowledge to every student, as to drawing
for the press. There is no question that the best preparation for this
work is the _best general art teaching that can be obtained_. The
student must have drawn from the antique and from life; he must have
learned composition and design; have studied from nature the relative
values of light and shade, aerial perspective and the like; in short,
have followed the routine study for a painter whose first aim should be
to be a master of monochrome.
In the more technical parts, which the young illustrator by process will
require to know, he needs personal help. He will have a multitude of
questions to ask "somebody" as to the reasons for what he is doing; _for
what style of process work he is by touch and temperament best fitted_,
and so on. All this has to be considered if we are to keep a good
standard of art teaching for illustration.
The fact that _a pen-and-ink drawing which looks well scarcely ever
reproduces well_, must always be remembered. Many drawings for process,
commended in art schools for good draughtsmanship or design, will not
reproduce as expected, for want of exact knowledge of the requirements
of process; whereas a drawing by a trained hand will often _look better
in the reproduction_. These remarks refer especially to ornament and
design, to architectural drawings and the like.
The topical illustrator and sketcher in weekly prints has, of course,
more licence, and it matters less what becomes of his lines in their
rapid transit through the press. Still the illustrator, of whatever rank
or style, has a right to complain if his drawing is reproduced on a
scale not intended by him, or by a process for which it is not fitted,
or if printed badly, and with bad materials.
But the sketchy style of illustration seems to be a little overdone at
present, and--being tolerable only when allied to great ability--remains
consequently in the hands of a few. There is plenty of talent in this
country which is wasted for want of control. It plays about us like
summer lightning when we want the precision and accuracy of the
telegraph.
The art of colour printing (whether it be by the intaglio processes, or
by chromo-lithography, or on relief blocks) has arrived at such
proficiency and has become such an important industry that it should be
mentioned here. By its means, a beautiful child-face, by Millais, is
scattered over the world by hundreds of thousands; and the reputation of
a young artist, like Kate Greenaway, made and established. The latter
owes much of her prestige and success to the colour-printer. Admitting
the grace, taste, and invention of Kate Greenaway as an illustrator,
there is little doubt that, without the wood engraver and the example
and sympathetic aid of such artists as H. S. Marks, R.A., Walter Crane,
and the late Randolph Caldecott, she would never have received the
praise bestowed upon her by M. Ernest Chesneau, or Mr. Ruskin. These
things show how intimately the arts of reproduction affect reputations,
and how important it is that more sympathy and communication should
exist between all producers. In the mass of illustrated publications
issuing from the press the expert can discern clearly where this
sympathy and knowledge exist, and where ability, on the part of the
artist, has been allied to practical knowledge of the requirements of
illustration.
The business of many will be to contribute, in some form, to the making
of pictures and designs to be multiplied in the press; and, in order to
learn the technique and obtain employment, some of the most promising
pupils have to fall into the ways of the producers of cheap
illustrations, Christmas cards, and the like. On the other hand, a
knowledge of the mechanical processes for reproducing drawings (as it is
being pressed forward in technical schools) is leading to disastrous
consequences, as may be seen on every railway bookstall in the kingdom.
In the "book of the future" we hope to see less of the "lath and
plaster" style of illustration, produced from careless wash drawings by
the cheap processes; fewer of the blots upon the page, which the modern
reader seems to take as a matter of course. In books, as in periodicals,
the illustrator by process will have to divest himself, as far as
possible, of that tendency to scratchiness and exaggeration that
injures so many process illustrations. In short, he must be more
careful, and give more thought to the meaning of his lines and washes,
and to the adequate expression of textures.
There is a great deal yet to learn, for neither artists nor writers have
mastered the subject. Few of our best illustrators have the time or the
inclination to take to the new methods, and, as regards criticism, it is
hardly to be expected that a reviewer who has a pile of illustrated
books to pronounce upon, should know the reason of the failures that he
sees before him. Thus the public is often misled by those who should be
its guides as to the value and importance of the new systems of
illustration.[24]
In conclusion, let us remember that everyone who cultivates a taste for
artistic beauty in books, be he author, artist, or artificer, may do
something towards relieving the monotony and confusion in style, which
pervades the outward aspect of so many books. It is a far cry from the
work of the missal writer in a monastery to the pages of a modern book,
but the taste and feeling which was shown in the fifteenth and sixteenth
centuries in the production of books, exists in the nineteenth, under
difficult conditions.
In the "book of the future" the author will help personally, more than
he has ever done, as I have already suggested. The subject is not
half-ventilated yet, nor can I touch upon it further, but the day is not
far distant when the power of the hand of the author will be tested to
the utmost, and lines of all kinds will appear in the text. There is
really no limit to what may be done with modern appliances, if only the
idea is seized with intelligence.
Two questions, however, remain unanswered--(1) Whether, as a matter of
language and history, we are communicating information to each other
much better than the ancients did in cuneiform inscriptions, on stones
and monuments. (2) Whether, as a matter of illustrative art, we are
making the best use of modern appliances.
Let us, then, cultivate more systematically the art of drawing for the
press, and treat it as a worthy profession. Let it not be said again,
as it was to me lately by one who has devoted half a lifetime to these
things, "The processes of reproduction are to hand, but where are our
artists?" Let it not be said that the chariot-wheels of the press move
too fast for us--that chemistry and the sun's rays have been utilised
too soon--that, in short, the processes of reproduction have been
perfected before their time! I think not, and that an art--the art of
pictorial expression--which has existed for ages and is now best
understood by the Japanese, may be cultivated amongst us to a more
practical end.
[Illustration: "TAKE CARE." (W. B. BAIRD.)
(_Royal Academy, 1891._)]
FOOTNOTE:
[24] There seems but one rule of criticism in this connection. If a
book illustration comes out coarsely and (as is often the case) a
mere smudge, the process is blamed, when the drawing or photograph
may have been quite unsuitable for the process employed.
STUDENTS' DRAWINGS.
The following four examples of drawing from life, by students at
Victoria Street, fresh from art schools, are interesting as tentative
work. The object has been to test their powers and _adaptability for
line work_; avoiding outline in the experiment as much as possible.
Nos. 1, 3, and 4, it will be observed, evade backgrounds altogether--the
too ready solution of a difficult problem in line.
These drawings were made direct from life, in line; a system not to be
recommended, excepting as an experiment of powers.
Examples of students' wash drawings, &c., will appear in future editions
of this book.
[Illustration: No. XLI.
"_Spanish Woman_." A Study from Life.
By INA BIDDER.
This is a clever sketch with pen and ink and brush, and drawn with a
bold free hand, reproduced on an (untouched) process block. It shows
originality of treatment and courage on the part of the student; also
the value of great reduction to give strength and effect.
(Size of drawing, 16 x 11-1/2 in.)]
[Illustration: No. XLII.
"_Sketch from Life_," by ESTELLE D'AVIGDOR.
This student was the winner in a prize competition lately in _The
Studio_. She has undoubted ability, but not clearly in the direction
of line drawing. After considerable success in painting, this student
writes: "I still find the pen a difficult instrument to wield."
In this sketch we see the influence of Aubrey Beardsley and others of
the dense-black, reckless school of modern illustrators.
(Size of drawing, 10 x 6-3/4 in.) Zinc process.]
[Illustration: No. XLIII.
_Sketch from Life_, by G. C. MARKS.
This pen-and-ink drawing is interesting for colour, especially in the
hair; it would have been better modelled if drawn first in pencil or
chalk.
This student has an obvious aptitude for line work; the touch is very
good for a beginner.
(Size of drawing, 10-1/2 x 8 in.) Zinc process.]
[Illustration: No. XLIV.
_Bough of Common Furze_, by WILLIAM FRENCH.
A most careful study from nature in pen and ink. (Size of original
drawing, 14 x 11-1/2 in.) Reproduced by zinc process.
This artist learned the method of line work for process in a month.]
CANTOR LECTURES.
The ILLUSTRATIONS in this Volume are, for the most part, reproductions
of drawings which--for purposes of study and comparison--are shown by
Mr. Blackburn at his Lectures in Art Schools, enlarged to a scale of 15
to 20 ft.
Students who may be unable to attend these lectures can see some of the
original drawings on application (by letter) to "The Secretary, at Mr.
HENRY BLACKBURN'S STUDIO, 123, Victoria Street, Westminster."
APPENDIX.
1. PHOTO-ZINC PROCESS.--2. GELATINE PROCESS.--3. HALF-TONE.--4.
INTAGLIO PROCESSES.--5. DRAWING MATERIALS.--6. BOOKS FOR STUDENTS.--7.
DECORATIVE PAGES.--8. LIST OF PHOTO-ENGRAVERS.
PHOTO-ZINC PROCESS.
FOR THE REPRODUCTION OF LINE DRAWINGS IN RELIEF, SUITABLE FOR PRINTING
AT THE TYPE PRESS.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PROCESS.--The first stage is to have the drawing
photographed to the size required, and to transfer a print of it on to a
sensitized zinc plate. This print, or photographic image of the drawing
lying upon the zinc plate, is of greasy substance (bichromate of potash
and gelatine), and is afterwards inked up with a roller; the plate is
then immersed in a bath of nitric acid and ether, which cuts away the
parts which were left white upon the paper, and leaves the lines of the
drawing in relief. This "biting in," as it is called, requires
considerable experience and attention, according to the nature of the
drawing. Thus, the lines are turned into metal in a few hours, and the
plate, when mounted on wood to the height of type-letters, is ready to
be printed from, if necessary, at the rate of several thousands an hour.
THE COST of these blocks averages 6d. the square inch where a number are
made at one time, the minimum price being 5/-.
Small book illustrations by this process, by firms who make a specialty
of producing single illustrations, are often charged 9d. the square
inch, with a minimum of 7/6; but the cost should never be more than this
for a single block by the zinc process.
GELATINE PROCESS.
FOR THE REPRODUCTION OF DRAWINGS IN LINE IN RELIEF, SUITABLE FOR
PRINTING AT THE TYPE PRESS.
This is a more delicate and sensitive method of obtaining a relief
block. It is called the "gelatine," or "Gillot" process.
The drawing is photographed to the required size (as before), and the
_negative_ laid upon a glass plate (previously coated with a mixture of
gelatine and bichromate of potash). The part of this thin, sensitive
film not exposed to the light is absorbent, and when immersed in water
swells up. The part exposed to the light, _i.e._, the lines of the
drawing, remains near the surface of the glass. Thus we have a sunk
mould from which a metal cast can be taken, leaving the lines in relief
as in the zinc process. In skilful hands this process admits of more
delicate gradations, and pale, uncertain lines can be reproduced with
tolerable fidelity. There is no process yet invented which gives better
results from a pen-and-ink drawing for the type press.
Reproductions of pencil, chalk, and charcoal are also possible by this
process; but _they are not suited for it_, and there is generally too
much working up by hand on the block to suit rapid printing. These
blocks when completed have a copper surface. The blocks take longer to
make, and are about double the price of the photo-zinc process. THE COST
varies from 9d. to 1/6 the square inch.
M. Gillot, in Paris, may be said to be the inventor or perfector of this
process, now used by many photo engravers in London, notably by Mr.
Alfred Dawson, of Hogarth Works, Chiswick.
HALF-TONE PROCESS.
FOR THE REPRODUCTION OF WASH DRAWINGS, PHOTOGRAPHS, ETC., BY THE
SCREENED PHOTO-ZINC RELIEF PROCESS.
This method of making the blocks is more complicated. As there are no
lines in a wash drawing, or in a photograph from nature, or in a
painting, it is necessary to obtain some kind of grain, or interstices
of white, on the zinc plate, as in a mezzotint; so between the drawing
or photograph to be reproduced and the camera, glass screens covered
with lines or dots, are interposed, varying in strength according to the
light and shade required; thus turning the image of the wash drawing or
photograph practically into "line," with sufficient interstices of white
for printing purposes.
The coarseness or fineness of grain on these blocks varies according to
circumstances. Thus, for rapid printing on cylinder machines, with
inferior paper and ink, a wider grain and a deeper cut block is
necessary.
The examples in this book may be said to show these process blocks at
their best, with good average printing. The results from wash drawings,
as already pointed out, are uncertain, and generally gloomy and
mechanical-looking.
The reproductions of pencil, chalk, or charcoal drawings by this process
are generally unsatisfactory, even when printed under good conditions.
The blocks are shallow as compared with the zinc line process, and are
double the cost.
INTAGLIO PROCESSES.
PHOTOGRAVURE, AUTOTYPE, DALLASTYPE, ETC.
PHOTOGRAVURE.--First, a photographic negative is taken direct from the
picture to be reproduced, and from this an autotype carbon print is
taken and transferred on to glass or silvered copper, instead of on the
paper used in making carbon prints for sale. This picture is in delicate
relief, and forms the mould, upon which copper is electrically
deposited. After being made "conductive," the carbon mould is placed in
a galvanic bath, the deposit of copper upon it taking the impression
perfectly.
Another method is to transfer the same mould upon pure, clean copper,
and then operate with a powerful biting solution, which is resisted more
or less according to the varying thickness of carbon mould to be
penetrated. Thus the parts to be left smoothest are thick of carbon, and
the parts to be dark are bare, so that the mordant may act unresisted.
This, it will be perceived, is the opposite way to the process above
given, and is therefore worked from a "transparency," or photographic
"positive," instead of a negative. This is the Klick and Fox Talbot
method, and is very commonly in use at present.
The process of "photogravure" is well known, as employed by Messrs.
Boussod, Valadon, & Co. (Goupil), of Paris, and is adapted for the
reproduction of wash drawings, paintings, also drawings where the lines
are pale and uncertain, pencil, chalk, etc.; the greys and gradations of
pencil being wonderfully interpreted. In London the intaglio processes
are used by many of the firms mentioned on page 240. They are now much
used for the reproduction of photographic portraits in books, taking
place of the copperplate engraving.
THE COST of these plates is, roughly, 5/- the square inch. The makers of
these plates generally supply paper, and print, charging by the 100
copies. But engravings thus produced are comparatively little used in
modern book illustration, as they cannot be printed simultaneously with
the letter-press of a book; they are suitable only for limited editions
and "_editions de luxe_."
DRAWING MATERIALS FOR REPRODUCTION.
1.--FOR DRAWINGS IN LINE.--For general use, liquid Indian ink and
Bristol board; or hard paper of similar surface. "Clay board," the
surface of which can easily be removed with a scraper, is useful for
some purposes, but the pen touch on clay board is apt to become
mechanical.
2.--FOR DRAWINGS IN PENCIL AND CHALK, grained papers are used (see p.
113 and following). These papers are made of various textures, with
black or white lines and dots vertical, horizontal, and diagonal. As
a matter of fact, grained papers are little used in book and
newspaper illustration in this country, and unless artistically
treated the results are very unsatisfactory. They are most suitable
for landscape work and sketches of effect.
3.--FOR WASH DRAWINGS.--Prepared boards for wash drawings, varying in
surface and texture according to the scale of the drawing, the brush
handling of the artist, and the nature of the work to be reproduced.
These must be decided by the teacher. Lamp black and opaque white are
commonly used. A combination of line and wash is generally to be
avoided.
The materials for drawing for reproduction are to be obtained from the
following amongst other artists' colourmen.
A. ACKERMAN, 191, Regent Street, W.
J. BARNARD & SON, 19, Berners Street, W.
CORNELISSEN & SON, 22, Great Queen Street, W.C.
LECHERTIER, BARBE, & Co., 60, Regent Street, W.
JAS. NEWMAN, 24, Soho Square, W.
REEVES & SONS, 113, Cheapside, E.C.
CHAS. ROBERSON & CO., 99, Long Acre, W.C.
GEO. ROWNEY & CO., 64, Oxford Street, W.
WINSOR & NEWTON, 37, Rathbone Place, W.
PERCY YOUNG, 137, Gower Street, W.C.
BOOKS FOR STUDENTS.
The following will be found useful:--
1.--"_The Graphic Arts_," by P. G. HAMERTON (London: Macmillan &
Co.).
2.--"_Pen and Pencil Artists_," by JOSEPH PENNELL (London: Macmillan
& Co.).
3.--"_English Pen Artists of To-Day_," by J. G. HARPER (London:
Rivington, Percival & Co.).
The value and comprehensive character of Mr. Hamerton's book is well
known, but it reaches into branches of the art of illustration far
beyond the scope of this book. Of the second it may be said that Mr.
Joseph Pennell's book is most valuable to students of "black and white,"
with the caution that many of the illustrations in it were _not drawn
for reproduction_, and would not reproduce well by the processes we have
been considering. The third volume seems more practical for elementary
and technical teaching. It is to be regretted that these books are so
costly as to be out of the reach of most of us; but they can be seen in
the library of the South Kensington Museum.
Mr. Hamerton's "Drawing and Engraving, a Brief Exposition of Technical
Principles and Practice" (London: Adam and Charles Black, 1892), "The
Photographic Reproduction of Drawings," by Col. J. Waterhouse (Kegan,
Paul, & Co., 1890), "Lessons in Art," by Hume Nisbet (Chatto & Windus,
1891), are portable and useful books, full of technical information. Sir
Henry Trueman Wood's "Modern Methods of Illustrating Books," and Mr. H.
R. Robertson's "Pen and Ink Drawing" (Winsor & Newton) are both
excellent little manuals, but their dates are 1886.
DECORATIVE PAGES.
(FROM OLD MSS. AND BOOKS TO BE SEEN IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM.)
(_Reprinted from the Cantor Lectures_.)
1. "Example of early Venetian writing, from a copybook of the 15th
century, written with a reed pen. Note the clearness and picturesqueness
of the page; also the similarity to the type letters used to-day--what
are called 'old face,' and of much (good and bad) letter in modern
books."
2. "A beautiful example of Gothic writing and ornament, from a French
illuminated manuscript in the British Museum; date 1480. Here the
decorative character and general balance of the page is delightful to
modern eyes."
3. "_Fac-simile_ of a printed page, from Polydore Vergil's "History of
England," produced in Basle, in 1556. The style of type is again
familiar to us in books published in 1894; but the setting out of the
page, the treatment of ornament (with little figures introduced, but
subservient to the general effect), is not familiar, because it is
seldom that we see a modern decorative page. The printer of the past had
a sense of beauty, and of the fitness of things apparently denied to all
but a few to-day."
4. "An illuminated printed page, 1521, with engraved borders, after
designs by Holbein; figures again subordinate to the general effect."
5. "Examples of Italian, 14th century; ornament, initial, and letters
forming a brilliant and harmonious combination."
ILLUSTRATIONS of the above and other decorative pages (which could not
be reproduced in this book) are shown at the lectures on a large scale.
Of the many modern books on decoration and ornament, the handbooks by
Mr. Lewis Foreman Day (London: Batsford) are recommended to students of
"the decorative page"; also "_English Book Plates_," by Egerton Castle
(G. Bell & Sons).
LIST OF PROCESS BLOCK MAKERS.
From a long list of photo-engravers, the following are mentioned from
personal knowledge of their work:--
RELIEF BLOCKS.
ANDRE & SLEIGH, Bushey, Herts.
THE ART REPRODUCTION COMPANY, Clairville Grove, South Kensington.
MR. DALLAS, 5, Furnival Street, E.C.
A. & C. DAWSON, Hogarth Works, Chiswick.
DELLAGANA & CO., Gayton Road, Hampstead, N.W.
DIRECT PHOTOGRAPHIC COMPANY, 38, Farringdon Street, E.C.
HARE & SONS, LTD., Bride Court, Fleet Street.
CARL HENTSCHEL, 182, Fleet Street, E.C.
CHAS. GEARD (Agent for Krakow), MacLean's Bldgs., New St. Sq., E.C.
MEISENBACH CO., Ltd., Wolfington Road, West Norwood, S.E.
JOHN SWAIN & SON, 58, Farringdon Street, E.C.
SWAN ELECTRIC LIGHT CO., 114, Charing Cross Road, W.C.
TYPOGRAPHIC ETCHING CO., 3, Ludgate Circus Buildings, E.C.
WALKER & BOUTALL, Clifford's Inn, Fleet Street, E.C.
WATERLOW & SONS, Ltd., London Wall, E.C.
VINCENT & HAHN, 34, Barbican, E.C.
INTAGLIO.
Several of the firms mentioned above are makers of "Intaglio" plates;
some are also wood-engravers, photo-lithographers, etc.; and agents for
French, German, and Austrian photo-engravers.
Amongst leading firms who make "Intaglio" plates are Messrs. Boussod,
Valadon, & Co. (London and Paris); and Messrs. Angerer & Goeschl, of
Vienna.
The Autotype Company's admirable reproductions of photographs and
drawings should also be mentioned in this connection.
"Black and White."
NOTICE.--MR. HENRY BLACKBURN'S STUDIO is open five days a week for the
Study and Practice of DRAWING FOR THE PRESS with Technical Assistants.
Students join at any time.
* * * * *
_Private Instruction and by Correspondence._
123, VICTORIA STREET, WESTMINSTER (_near Army & Navy stores_).
OPINIONS OF THE PRESS
On the First Edition.
"'The Art of Illustration' is a brightly written account, by a man who
has had large experience of the ways in which books and newspapers are
illustrated nowadays.... As a collection of typical illustrations by
artists of the day, Mr. Blackburn's book is very attractive."--_The
Times._
"Mr. Blackburn explains the processes--line, half-tone, and so
forth--exemplifying each by the drawings of artists more or less skilled
in the modern work of illustration. They are well chosen as a whole, to
show the possibilities of process work in trained hands."--_Saturday
Review._
"We thoroughly commend this book to all whom it may
concern."--_Athenaeum._
"Mr. Henry Blackburn, perhaps our greatest expert on the subject of the
book illustrator's art, has written a most interesting volume, which no
young black-and-white artist can very well afford to do without. Nearly
a hundred splendid and instructive illustrations."--_Black and White._
"The author's purpose in this book is to show how drawing for the press
may be best adapted to its purpose.... Many of Mr. Blackburn's
instructions are technical, but all are beautifully illustrated by
choice reproductions from some of the best black-and-white work of the
time."--_Daily News._
"Mr. Blackburn's interesting and practical manual is designed, in the
first instance, for the guidance of students who intend to become
illustrators in black-and-white, but for the general reader it contains
a large quantity of readable and attractive matter."--_The Literary
World._
"We must express our admiration for the contents of 'The Art of
Illustration,' and its fund of technical information."--_Bookseller._
"The book is full of interest, containing close upon a hundred varied
examples of illustrations of the day. A work of unquestionable
value."--_Publishers' Circular._
"Mr. Blackburn knows from experience what is best for the processes; his
volume is illustrated with nearly one hundred drawings, most of them
good examples of what is being done. 'The Art of Illustration' is an
entirely safe guide."--_Art Journal._
"Mr. Henry Blackburn has written an able book on 'The Art of
Illustration,' which, it is not overpraise to say, should be in the
hands of every artist who draws for reproduction."--_The Gentlewoman._
"'The Art of Illustration' is perhaps the most satisfactory work of art
of its kind that has yet been published."--_Sunday Times._
"A very clear exposition of the various methods of
reproduction."--_Guardian._
"Mr. Blackburn sails his book under the flag of Sir John Gilbert, and
justly expounds the all-importance of line."--_National Observer._
"'The Art of Illustration' contains a vast amount of valuable artistic
information, and should be on every student's bookshelf."--_Court
Circular._
"Mr. Henry Blackburn is a well-known authority on the technical aspects
of painting and design, and this circumstance lends value to his
exposition of 'The Art of Illustration.'... He writes with admirable
clearness and force."--_Leeds Mercury._
"The excellent series of reproductions in this book show (_inter alia_)
the variety of effects to be obtained by the common zinc process. Mr.
Blackburn's book will prove of great value to the student and interest
to the general reader."--_Manchester Guardian._
"This volume is full of good criticism, and takes a survey of the many
processes by which books may be beautified.... A charming and
instructive volume."--_Birmingham Gazette._
"'The Art of Illustration' will have the deepest interest for artists
and others concerned in the illustration of books."--_Yorkshire Post._
"A very interesting quarto, worth having for its typical
illustrations."--_British Architect._
"Mr. Blackburn's volume should be very welcome to artists, editors, and
publishers."--_The Artist._
"A most useful book."--_Studio._
End of Project Gutenberg's The Art of Illustration, by Henry Blackburn