Studio: international art (1.1893)

Drawing for Reproduction

into) the surface of the process block, making small Here it might be useful to note some processes
indentations in the zinc. employed in the present number. The frontispiece

Here I can allow myself but a few words on and all the pencil sketches are reproduced by
pen-drawings not made for process. This example Messrs. Dawson's swelled gelatine process. This
—the Hall, Barnard's Inn—made years ago and preserves the pure white of the paper, but gives a
now reproduced, shows that almost everything is certain coarseness in the fine shading. In the
possible to mechanical reproduction to-day. This sketches from oil we find the ordinary half-tone ;
drawing, worked with never a thought or idea, or also in the Hollyer photographs, where the rough
any knowledge of process, comes every whit as well surface of the platinotype exaggerates the difficulty,
as if it had been drawn scrupulously to that end. already great by reason of the softened definition
It is all pen-work, save the outline around it, and which confuses the white network that covers the
the signature. The reduction from the original whole surface of a half-tone block, unless cut away,
is only three-quarters of
an inch across, and the
reproduction is in every
respect exact. Of course
it is only swelled gelatine
that could perform this feat,
but by that process it is
clear that you get results
at once sympathetic and
faithful without the neces-
sity of caring overmuch
about the purely mechani-
cal drudgery of learning a
convention in pen and ink
that shall be suitable for
the etched processes.
That convention has been
wrought — it may not be
said by tears and blood,
but certainly with prodi-
gious labour — by the
masters of the art of pen-
drawing, into something
artistic and pleasing to the
eye, while it satisfies pho-
tographic and chemical
needs ; but here is a pro-
cess that demands no pre-
vious training in drawing
for reproduction, and leaves
the artist unfettered. True,
it opens a vista of easy re-
production for the amateur,
which is a thing terrible to
think upon, but, on the
other hand, to it we owe
some delightful reproduc-
tions of painters' pen-draw-
ings that make the earlier
numbers of the illustrated

exhibition catalogues worth the hall, Barnard's inn. drawing made without knowledge of

having. C. G. H. process, and reproduced by swelled gelatine

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