Paper

1988.25

William A. McGill

Gift

Gift of William A. McGill

1910

9-1/4 in

12-1/4 in

Cultural/Historical Context

"Joseph Pennell was born in Philadelphia in 1866. During most of his career, he lived in London and etched scenes of British towns and cities as well as other parts of Europe. Pennell could often be seen etching out of doors, directly in front of his subject. While in London Pennell met and became good friends with James Whistler, an American expatriate. Later Pennell and his wife published a book on Whistler, who was first recognized as an etcher. Pennell was an illustrator and a printmaker who published several books including Etchers and Etching, in which he included several etchings of his own and prints by other artists, in order to illustrate various printmaking techniques. A couple of techniques described in the book, which he himself used, are those of the mezzotint, drypoint, and aquatint. Pennell produced around 1,500 prints, many of which have been published. He is considered America’s leading illustrator and etcher of the 19th century, and in his mature period, he depicted historic landmarks in America and was interested in the industrialization occurring around him. Coal at Cardiff is a drypoint etching. Cardiff is an island off the coast of Wales. Pennell uses hatching to create dark areas, and he also d eepens cuts into the copper plate to give a darker tone to the print. The foreground and background are clearly distinguished by the lighter and darker areas. Pennell also achieves depth by the use of linear perspective. The print is full of details of the mining and loading of coal at Cardiff, which was a major exporter at the time the print was made. The only open space, in the upper right area, is cleverly etched with the depiction of clouds and a few birds. The viewer can see smoke rising in the middle of the print. Pennell “re-popularized” prints and etchings in America. This print is typical of Pennell’s style and subject matter, making the landscape come alive. Pennell did not romanticize the scene but etched what he saw, an image that is truthful. Cassie Kelley "