Pastoral Landscapes
J. D. Harding, Mid 19th Century
J. D. Harding, Mid 19th Century
Click on image to view detail views
 Wych Elm Tree |
 Ash and Oak |
 Thorn Willow Beech and Birch |
 Black Poplar |
 Abel Oak |
 Cedar |
J. D. Harding (1798-1863) (after)
|
|
Set of pastoral landscapes, each featuring different species of large trees. Rural folk going about their routines provide a sense of scale, and the attention to the qualities of light link him to his contemporaries Constable and Turner. Harding and Hulmandel were among the earliest practitioners of lithography in England, which in this series replicates the tonal variations of a sepia ink wash drawing very effectively. Harding was the author of an art book called Lessons on Trees.
James Duffield Harding was an English painter, engraver and writer who spent his life in London. Harding received his initial instruction in painting from his artist father and proved to be something of a prodigy, exhibiting for the first time at the Royal Academy at the age of 14. He went on to study watercolor painting, engraving and lithography, and his skills in both watercolor and lithography are displayed in this particular set of prints of trees. In addition to his book on trees, Harding wrote other books on artistic theory and practice: The Principles and Practice of Art and Elementary Art or the Use of the Lead Pencil advocated and Explained. He was a champion of the landscapes of Turner, whose work he praised in his writings. Harding also taught art, and was the drawing master and sketching companion of famous British art critic John Ruskin. These lithographs were published by the firm of Charles Joseph Hulmandel (1789-1850), an English draftsman, lithographer and printer. He worked mainly in London, although he had trained in Paris as a painter and travelled extensively in Europe making topographical drawings. In 1817, on a visit to Munich, he was introduced to lithography by the pioneering lithographer Alois Senefelder. The following year he produced Twenty-four Views of Italy, a set of images he had drawn and lithographed. Dissatisfied with the way his work had been printed, Hullmandel set up his own lithographic press. The quality of work he published by himself and other artists such as Giovanni Belzoni helped popularize the topographical lithograph among British artists. Condition: Generally very good with the usual light toning, wear, soiling, soft creases. Few marginal tears neatly restored. References: "Charles Joseph Hulmandel." The Grove Dictionary of Art. New York: Macmillan. 2000. Artnet.com. http://www.artnet.com/library/03/0393/T039379.asp (28 March 2002). "J(ames) D(uffield) Harding." The Grove Dictionary of Art. New York: Macmillan. 2000. Artnet.com. http://www.artnet.com/library/03/0366/T036627.asp (28 March 2002). Landow, George P. "J. D. Harding and John Ruskin on Nature's Infinite Variety." The Victorian Web. Reprinted from The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, 38 (1970). http://www.victorianweb.org/victorian/ruskin/harding.html (28 March 2002). |