 |
|
| PC
48
Jacques Callot St. John the Baptist Preaching in the Desert Engraving, c. 1620 2 11/16" x 3 ½" |
 |
|
| PC
46
Frontispiece from the Capricci di Varie Figure (Nancy Series) Etching, c. 1622 2 ¼" x 3 ¼" PC
47
|
 |
 |
|
PC 169, 170 Two pages from the La Vie de L'Enfant Prodique Etching, 1634 2 1/2" x 3 1/4" |
 |
 |
| Jacques
Callot, in his very short life of forty-three years, had an astounding
influence on the development of etching. Born in Nancy, France, in 1592,
he began his career at a transitional time in the field of printmaking.
Reproductive engraving, the art of translating an artist's painting or
drawing into a print, was a popular practice throughout the sixteenth century.
In his early years, it seemed as though Callot was destined to be one of
the many reproductive engravers. He began in Rome where he was trained
as an engraver under Phillippe Thomassin. While there, he did a number
of religious subjects, of which the engraving in the collection (PC 48)
is an example. Not much is known of this particular one, St. John the
Baptist Preaching in the Desert, or any of the others similar to it,
because these were done before Callot became an etcher. In this print,
however, one can get a foretaste of his later style in the miniature detail
and grouping of foreground figures.
At the age of 19, Callot moved to Florence where the path for his career would change. The reason for the move, as most have hypthesized, was the death of Margaret of Austria, Queen of Spain. An artist in Florence was commissioned to make etchings for the funeral, and he sought the assistance of several other artists, including the young Callot, to help with the poject. It was here that Callot's talent came to fruition, and he gained his first exposure to etching. (Because of the proliferation of the reproductive engraving, etching had become the serious artist's choice for a creative medium. ) he was also exposed to the commedia dell' arte, a form of improvised street play that was very popular. The characters in this theater group would be the basis for many of his works, including the Capricci di Varie Figure in the Wake Forest collection (PC 46, 47). The Capricci marks the beginnings of Callot's mature style. By the time of its first publication in 1617, he had pergected a new technique in etching- the use of a hard varnish for a ground instead of the softer, waxy ground that most etchers used. Etching had always been an unpredictable process. With the waxy ground, overbiting occurred, and mistakes were common. The harder varnish, created for lutes, but used by silversmiths and jewelers, was made of mastic and linseed oil. These materials resisted the acid better and reduced the number of damaged plates. With this process, etching was no longer guesswork. Callot liked the varnish so much that he had it shipped to Nancy after he moved back there in 1621. The Capricci was a series of fifty etchings loosely based on the commedia actors. There is no obvious common theme. In the usage of the day, cappriccio meant that something was lively, whimsical, and bound by no restrictions. The book was dedicated to Lorenzo de Medici, whose name is mentioned in the frontispiece for the book(PC 46). There are two assumptions for the purpose of the book. First, the series could have been a instructional book on drawing for Lorenzo, the younger brother of Duke Cosimo, Callot's patron. This is based on the fourteen paired figures in the book, where one figure is done in outline only, and the other is shaded in. Number 47 is an example of these small figures. Second, the series of prints ma have been a showpiece for Callot's abilities. It was first published in 1617 while he was in Florence. In 1621, Duke Cosimo died, and Callot moved back to Nancy. Upon his return, he reworked the whole series and published it again around 1622. The prints in the collection come from the latter version, although there is very little difference between the two. The other Callot prints in the collection are from La Vie de L'Enfante Prodique, or the Life of the Prodigal Son (PC 169, 170). Callot etched this series of eleven prints very late in his life, and the book itself was published a year after his death in 1635. Israel Henriet, the publisher of the series, did inscriptions below each print, describing the scene. The story of the prodigal son was a popular one because it allowed for the genre scenes in a biblical framework. Number 169 is the scene of the prodigal son's departure. The inscription reads, "This sudden parting is like a pressage that too great a calm is followed by a storm." Number 170 depicts the son's return from his misadventure: "As soon as he enters port after his shipwreck, he is fed, clothed and fitted out afresh." The prints are small, showing Callot's great skill in minute detail. Both are teeming with life and crowded with many figures. The composition emphasizes the main action of the figures. Callot had many other achievements. He composed a famous series on the casualties of war, numerous biblical prints, and landscapes. He also developed a tool, called the echoppe, that could reproduce the same swelling lines seen in engraving. Through his many inventions and original technique, Callot changed the art of etching. K. H. 1.
Daniel, 1974, xiii.
|