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William Alfred Delamotte

1775 - 1863

Lake Thun by William Alfred Delamotte
 

Lake Thun   1834

  Original soft ground etching with mezzotint.
Signed and dated in the plate.
S 217 x 294 mm; P 179 x 229 mm; I 142 x 182 mm
£320
 
Extremely rare early proof impression, with William Delamotte’s name and the title scratched faintly in the wide blank plate margin. The only other impression of this print which we have been able to trace was presented by the artist himself to the British Museum in 1850 (reg.no. 1850,0413.83).

This plate presents an unusual combination of printmaking techniques and is a fine example both of William Delamotte’s ability as a landscape draughtsman and of his innovative methods as a printmaker. Delamotte has designed this image as a pure soft ground etching, in line alone. He has then added tonal shading to the image using the most delicate of mezzotint ground. It is extremely unlikely that William Delamotte could have envisaged plates of this nature to be printed in published editions as the delicate mezzotint could not possibly have withstood the printing of many impressions. The few examples of William Delamotte’s prints of this type which we have located in museums are proofs without publication line and yet they show virtually no vestige of the mezzotint remaining. This outstanding proof from the Delamotte family collection shows the delicate tonal balance of the fragile mezzotint work fresh and unblemished.

On firm wove paper with margins. Excellent condition.