In the 1600's
Rembrandt created his famed etchings, noted worldwide for their delicacy
of tone and intricacy of detail. In Rembrandt's later years these etchings
were in great demand by collectors. At Rembrandt's death in 1669,
many of his plates had been canceled of destroyed. However, there remained
an important body of approximately 100 plates which were still capable of
producing fine quality impressions. For nearly a hundred years (1669-1767)
the whereabouts of the bulk of his plates seemed shrouded on mystery. Over
time (1785-19060 some of Rembrandt's plates began to pass
through various hands, beginning with C.H. Watelet, then Pierre Francois
Basan, Auguste Jean, afterward in 1906 to Alvin Beaumont together with
Michael Bernard.
(continued at bottom of page)
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Title |
Medium |
Price |
Image |
| Jon Cutman Goldsmith | Engraving
7 x 9 |
$500 |
|
| The Three Trees | Engraving | $500 |
|
| Abraham & Issac | Engraving
7 x 9 |
$500 |
|
| The Gold Weigher | Engraving
10 x 11 |
$500 |
|
| Adam and Eve | Engraving
|
$500 |
|
| The Portrait In Old Velvet Cap | Engraving
6 x 8 |
$500 |
|
| Clement De Jonet | Engraving
8 x 10 |
$500 |
|
| The Windmill | Etching 6 x 8-3/8 Ref.#233 |
POR |
|
| Abraham and Isaac | Etching 6-1/4 x 5-1/8 Ref.# 34 |
POR |
|
| Jacob Caressing Benjamin | Etching 4-3/4 x 3-1/2 Ref.#33 |
POR |
|
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____________________________________________ ...Amand-Durand's skill was already known to the experts of the 19th and 20th centuries... ____________________________________________ By the 1800s, Rembrandt's surviving plates were very worn and flat. Amand-Durand (1831-1905), a noted engraver of that time, decided to remedy this with his own skill. He researches and studied those pieces available a in collections, and then spent the major part of his life exactly duplicating Rembrandt's images onto copper plates, achieving great quality through his own technical abilities. He published a complete set if very fine reproductions of all the Rembrandt etchings. ____________________________________________ ...Amand-Durand... looked with sadness at the possibility that future generations might never be able to see the true beauty of a Rembrandt etching... ____________________________________________ These Recreations of Rembrandt's work were called Amand-Durand's after Rembrandt. Their incredible clarity and exactness was also achieved because Amand-Durand used as his guide, not the worn and flat plates, but the first and second state etching of the master's original works. ____________________________________________ "A good copy, by an artist who is technically equal to the
master he has to render, and who is in perfect sympathy with him, and
reproduces him as a labour of love, is still...the next best thing to a
fine early impression from the original plate itself." ___________________________________________________________ References indicate that Amand-Durand's skill was already known to the experts of the 19th and early 29th centuries. George Duplessis, Conservator of the cabinet de Estampes in 1855, so appreciated the genius of Durand that he had his work published in books which now belong to the Bibliotheque National in France. It was Amand-Durand who was used as the master etcher in such books by Duplessis as Historie de la Gravure, an anthology of European engravings so valuable that it is kept under lock and key in most noted art libraries. Thus, what we get is a master duplicating a master 200 years later. ____________________________________________ " A fine impression from a fine copy is nearer to the thought of a Rembrandt than an impression taken directly from one of his coppers when they had been worn by too much printing." Etching and Etchers ___________________________________________________________ Durand, like Rembrandt often did, sold his etching for book illustrations until his death in 1905. At that time they were purchased by the Dominique Vincent family. who continued to see them as book engravings to the Bibliotheque National and the Louvre Museum as wonderful and exact duplications of the original states or Rembrandt's etching. Sporadically, though, they would also sell them to interested private parties and dealers, and it was this that caused whispered stories to spread among the entire art community! ____________________________________________ " most of these copies may be dismissed without discussion; they are either so distinct from Rembrandt in manner and so amateurish in style that they could never cause the collector the uneasiness that might well be caused by a faded and framed Amand-Durand." A catalogue of Rembrandt Etchings ____________________________________________
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" The reproductions of Durer and other great masters by Messr. Amand-Durand of Paris are wonderful specimens, and though made without the slightest intention of imposing on the public, the are ... so perfect..." The Print Collector's Handbook _________________________________________ It is said among art circles, although quietly, that in the early 1900s a number of these Amand-Durand after Rembrandt etchings did find their way into famous hands and collections much to the dismay of many. This was the rumor floating around until a certain discovery in the early 20th century. _________________________________________ "Amand-Durand published a complete set... of all Rembrandt etchings... I have seen some of them printed on old paper, with burr, that are almost deceptive: I have even noted some in museum collections." Rembrandt Etchings _______________________________________________________ In early spring of 1985, a noted American art dealer doing research in Europe on the availability of Rembrandt etchings, Stumbled upon some so questionably perfect that he decided to dig even further. Intense study revealed that these were, in fact, the noted Amand-Durand etchings that had been alluded for so many years! _________________________________________ "The most interesting work was probably done by M. Durand whose copies of Rembrandt and Durer printed on old paper were so good that the most serious 'authorities' were deceived by them..." Etchers and Etchings _______________________________________________________ Realizing the value of what he had stumbled upon and the problems created when they fell into wrong hands, he determined to locate the original copper plates. It took time, but with tremendous ingenuity, he located the French family Dominique Vincent who had been completely unaware of the flurry they were inadvertently creating with the prints. _________________________________________ " Rembrandt's plates were, for instance, being printed into this century, although the plates were worked and reworked that little of Rembrandt remained..." Christie's 8th Annual Catalogue _________________________________________ Both the Louvre and the Bibliotheque National in Paris had been purchasing these etching to enable the French to see the incredible story behind them. The American dealer, in turn, purchased all 348 original copper plates so the American public could also see the incredible story... of how a noted craftsman through his skill and dedication to the great master Rembrandt, created work with such quality that the repercussions were felt throughout the art community. _________________________________________ 347 Plates exist of which each subject is individually
pulled.
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