UNIVERSITY of GLASGOW

Etchings         Institutions search term: obach

Archway, Brussels

Impression: Art Institute of Chicago
Art Institute of Chicago
(1938.1867)
Number: 344
Date: 1887
Medium: etching
Size: 127 x 217 mm
Signed: butterfly at left
Inscribed: no
Set/Publication: no
No. of States: 1
Known impressions: 6
Catalogues: K.366; M.361
Impressions taken from this plate  (6)

TECHNIQUE

Archway, Brussels, is pure etching. The figures were drawn lightly with expressive broken curved and crooked lines, short wriggly lines, dots and dashes. The shop and archway were drawn with longer broken lines - sometimes with big gaps in the outlines - and etched more deeply. A lot of speckles from foul biting cover the plate, giving it a dusty texture. The close cross-hatching in the window and door add richness to the shadows of the interior, and may have been rubbed down slightly to soften the lines.

PRINTING

Two impressions of Archway, Brussels were printed in dark brown ink, one on cream laid paper with a large watermark of two lions either side of a shield, crowned (Graphic with a link to impression #K3640105), and the other on thin off-white 'antique' (pre-1800) paper (Graphic with a link to impression #K3660105). Others are in black ink, on a cream - almost tan - laid 'PRO PATRIA' watermarked paper (Graphic with a link to impression #K3660104), on cream Japanese paper (Graphic with a link to impression #K3660103), on cream laid paper with the watermark of a crown over 'GR' (Graphic with a link to impression #K3660102) and finally on ivory laid paper with a partial countermark, probably 'DHK' (Graphic with a link to impression #K3660104).