International studio (40.1910)

Sir Htibert von Herkomers Lithographs

has been needlessly limited by the conventional he has tested it assiduously, and with the most

acceptance of the art as merely a form of auto- serious consideration of its possible defects, and he

graphic chalk drawing—as a convenient process by has delayed publishing his conclusions about it

which both slight sketches and elaborate drawings until he had satisfied himself that their correctness

in chalk can be reproduced and printed. To could be guaranteed by actual demonstration and

escape this limitation, and to contrive a way in definite achievement

which it could be removed, he brought to bear The first essential of his method is that the work

upon his first experiments with lithography the should be done directly upon the stone ; it does

knowledge he possessed of mezzotint engraving, not permit the use of transfer pape", because a

and by the light of this knowledge he quickly drawing made upon paper could not be carried to

evolved a method which enabled him to get, in completion by the processes he employs and then

working upon stone, results closely akin to mezzo- be transferred to the stone. At the outset the

tint, but distinguished by even greater subtleties stone is granulated by being delicately ground

of effect than are ordinarily within the mezzotint with very finely sifted sand, and is given a grain

engraver's reach. To the perfecting of this method much smaller than has hitherto been customary in

he has devoted several months of strenuous labour, lithographic work—though, it may be noted, this

granulation can be varied by

subsequent grinding here and

, I i<t > there with coarser sand if the

V I ''"I' Y~ stone is being prepared for a

X'/'i {sI'L^iP*' subject which requires in some

. WTTT^^ ■' parts a larger grain than in

v ' Y *>\i <■'' §t ' f others. Then the stone is

s v- Ay /V1 / f/ /\ri^k,Q^ i ,z^f'y^ — 'blacked all over with an ink

\ ^\ri\V Hi /'' "'/ " \\\ v I P^^a^S^^F^^i" made, in the usual manner for

\ 1 VvbuI / i— illII II Ny3>fT^• /\ ' -
i: \ '\ \TW / >-r • C\Lr -^\) rSliO 4r~fy^'' ~ lithographic work, by grinding

>l N^^l^y "^J^cl \ Mfs~^y^f^~^ ■■ together parings of lithographic

\ ^\fe^<L - ' ^ "<Sw/fip t*^>~ chalk and a proportionate

r amount of Russian tallow.

\j£ This ink, however, is not

1 smeared or rubbed on with a

yf~\ stump or leather—the way in

I which it has been usually
t^°ti applied — but is dabbed on

• V>{ ' firmly with a stiff hog-hair

IfWMHBFP^I^^jjfPH^^ flffiifll'i y^Stfa^jjI ii \l& i brush so as to force it well

into the granulation of the
stone, and to make it lie on
both the depressions and the
projections of the grain.

{l/flJLJ^HH^H There is a particular neces-

—*^M^ sicy for care in laying this black

ground, because it is by scrap-
^BSSfe—'T^jB^a^ytPH^M^JBR 'nS away Sir

I • - ' I IT i; Hubert obtains all the tone

JKKPF"^" ' r — effects that arc required in the

..." s picture he is producing. Just

as mezzotinters scrape away
the tooth on the copper plate,
so he removes the ground to
a greater or less extent accord-

I I k'Kii^m m^ t0 t'le ^e»ree °^ tone ^e

desires to express—-the more,

'le parc" (See preceding article) hy a. de la gandara of course, the amount of

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