We’ve recently visited the National Gallery to see “The Woman in White: Joanna Hiffernan and James McNeill Whistler”. The show focuses on the model and her collaboration with Whistler. But to me the really extraordinary aspect of the show were the etchings and drypoints done by Whistler that are prominently on display.
Whistler was an amazing etcher. His drawing skills are sublime and they are everywhere here. But, it’s an altogether different matter to draw on copper with an etching needle. Whistler was such a master of this and of the more challenging technique of drypoint. In this technique, lines are drawn directly into the plate with a sharp tipped needle (sometimes diamond tipped, as shown below).
Whistler was an amazing etcher. His drawing skills are sublime and they are everywhere here. But, it’s an altogether different matter to draw on copper with an etching needle. Whistler was such a master of this and of the more challenging technique of drypoint. In this technique, lines are drawn directly into the plate with a sharp tipped needle (sometimes diamond tipped, as shown below).
These lines hold the ink which is then printed. Drypoint is executed often in such a way that a metal burr is created which gives a unique feature to the lines. They appears as very dark marks that seem almost to be furry. A burr is shown below and appears as the bright line. The dark lines below it are etched lines.
Control of drypoint lines is difficult. The metal's hardness is difficult to draw through, and often results in jagged and broken lines.. But Whistler’s drypoint lines dance and swirl. They are so very liquid and so very beautifully descriptive.
These dark lines (seen in the detail of the print "Jo", below) contrast often with very light lines (the very delicate lines describing the contours of the models face as seen below in Weary). Whistler’s control was extraordinary. And, it is another wonder how the artist wiped his plates. A printmaker covers the drawn plate with a viscous ink, usually black, and then carefully removes it so that ink is left in the lines, but not on the plate’s surface. This is so tricky! Often, eliminating plate tone comes at the cost of wiping ink from the delicate lines.
Detail: James McNeill Whistler, Jo, 1861 (state i/i), drypoint on ivory laid paper, National Gallery of Art, Washington, Rosenwald Collection, 1949.5.53
Detail: James McNeill Whistler, Weary, 1863 (state iv/vi), drypoint on ivory Japan paper, National Gallery of Art, Washington, Gift of Myron A. Hofer, 1947.10.
And, considering the kinds of marks a printmaker can utilize, the work of Vicky Vogl is another extraordinary example. She is an artist with a vast knowledge of art, art history, and particularly, the craftsmanship of making art. She is a master of aquatint, which is another subject altogether. But what I’m pointing out here is a print she has done called "Strings". Her work reminds me so of Goya, who did often grim images which included fantastical creatures. Vicky's work has the same quality of line but is filled with joy and delight. In the eye of this wonderful rabbit creature, we have a bold glint that is actually a hole in the plate. Did she drill it, or just have the good sense to put it to work for her? Her work is worth much study.
Strings, Victoria Vogl, A/P
detail
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