I first saw this colour woodcut Egglestone Abbey by Steven Hutchins around about 1983. A friend had been on one of his search-and-spend visits to Portobello Road in London and popped in to see Steven Hutchins at his stall as part of the exercise. Now, Steven was a dealer in Japanese woodblock but occasionally sold European woodblock artists. (I bought my treasured Paul Leschhorn from him). But on this occasion he had a woodcut by an artist none of us had ever come across: it was Steven Hutchins himself. And he had done something remarkable.
We knew about the handbook called Woodblock Printing that Frank Morley Fletcher had first published in 1916 but neither us suspected that anyone had used the book to teach themselves how to make woodcuts in the Japanese manner as late as the 1980s. But Steven Hutchins had. You can judge for yourself how successful you think he was but for me he did a good job even though when he asked me if I knew this artist when he showed me a woodcut one day, I failed to buy. (No reason why they should have been cheap but they weren't). Anyway, I wanted readers to see these prints just to show what people can achieve with application. You may also note that Steven worked strictly within the British topographical tradition in these two prints at least. Eggleston Abbey is in Co Durham, Lynton on the rocky coast of north Devon. Incidentally, I haven't seen him since the eighties. It was a great time of shared rediscovery but unfortunately the print dealers with flair like Steven Hutchins all moved on. Hail, and farewell.
Egglestone Abbey is for sale at Era Woodblock Prints erawoodblockprints.com/ in Toronto, Castle Rock, Lynton at annexgalleries.com/ in Santa Rosa. My thanks are due to them.
In all the bustle about the departure of Clive's great Blog I almost forgot to mention how amazing these two prints are. I have the book, I read it and use it. But came up with nothing close to these. Yet ! I understand Mr. Hutchins changed his artistic mind to other things. A printmaker talent lost.
ReplyDeleteIt says something about the quality of the saucerers book also. A good copy costing next to nothing.
PS I've stood on those rocks 25 years ago. An awesome experience.
The sorcerer being FMF? Clive was sceptical about the book being intended for students but the Japanese printmakers who visited London were amazed to see Fletcher's work as well. It would help that Steven used to visit Japan.
ReplyDeleteBut it was the times, you know, Gerrie; it was typical of the times. If you weren't busy scraping modern paint off Georgian doors, you were making colour woodcuts in the Japanese manner.
I don't know whre you will find Woodblock Printing right now. I inherited both editions, fortunately but there was nothing on Amazon the last time I looked.
Charles
But then I forget your superior search abilities.
ReplyDeleteI am forever a skeptic Charles, but I will tell you, I am stunned by the first print. It is breathtaking, and it is so evocative of Seaby's St. Andrew's print. For scope and skill, I am impressed. In this modern age of reproduction, it will soothe both of you to know that FMF's book is available for free, not only that, but I sent this link to a friend who is now teaching himself the technique as a way to de-stress in his busy Japanese corporate job. I am always open to re-consider a stance I may have taken, and I have to say, although the second one is more evocative of Hugh Casson than FMF, the first one is....well...outstanding.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/20195
You can download the entire book for free, and print it out....even for Luddites like you and I Charles, that is nothing to be sniffed at.
Clive
The things people say just make good copy, as you know, and I am sure you are doubly surprised to see what a good job Steven did. And I think you are quite right. Seaby was more the model than Fletcher himself. He would think he must have trained somewhere along the line but of course we never asked. He must be about 65 now.
ReplyDeleteFortunately, I inherited both editions of the Fletcher from Alan. I was less lucky with the Hutchins woodcut.
CGC
these are beautiful, charles, and interesting too. i would have never pegged them as contemporary. unlike with this guy: http://www.tomkillion.com/, the soul, the essence has been retained.
ReplyDeleteI'm pleased you like these prints because they were discoveries I was specially happy to make (and pass on). Ironically, they have become period themselves just because they date from the early days of the revival of interest in twenties/thirties printmaking. He wasn't churning them out. Funnily enough, at the time they struck me as rather antiquarian whereas they actually spring from a striking interest in discovery.
ReplyDeleteOh, and thanks for the Tom Killion mention. It's a pain we can't seem to add links on the comments section.
Charles
no... you can. i was just being lazy: tom killion.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Haji baba, for the informative discussion of our Hutchins Egglestone Abbey print.
ReplyDeleteMark Burkeitt
erawoodblockprints.com
I was hoping you would see it, Mark.
ReplyDelete