Arts & Humanities

摘要

Both the dust jacket and the cover of this book reproduce a lovely hand-colored etching of a bird perched on a branch, from the 1813 Birds of New South Wales. The "yellow ear honeysucker" serves as a fitting welcome in the first of three chronological volumes based on the works from a National Gallery of Australia exhibit: its artist, free settler John Lewin, produced the earliest-known intaglio prints. Many of the 377 images document the natural world, landscapes, and original inhabitants observed by early colonists from Great Britain. Others depict the townscapes and social life that developed as Australia became their "home" through the 19th century. Author, printmaking specialist, and curator Butler conveys a strong sense of patriotic pride while discussing 19th-century printmaking techniques as exemplified in the metal engravings, etchings, wood engravings, lithographs, and photogravures of individual artists and printers, some of whom emigrated not just from the British Isles, but also from places like Germany, Russia, France, and America.