John Park’s etching, “Strayed — A Moonlight Pastoral”

John Park (1830–91; fl. 1867-91)

“Strayed — A Moonlight Pastoral”, 1864–79, after Cecil Gordon Lawson (1849-82), printed by François Liénard (fl. c.1860s–1880s) and published in the revue “L'Art”

Etching cream laid paper

Size: (sheet) 42.2 x 28.5 cm; (plate) 27.8 x 23.9 cm; (image) 25.7 x 22.4 cm

Lettered below image with title and: "(Grosvenor Gallery)", production detail: "Creil [sic?] Lawson, pinx.", "J. Park, sc.", "Fçois Liénard, Imp. Paris.", and: "L'Art."

The British Museum offers the following description of this print:

“Moonlit view with a herd of sheep in the left foreground, in a field with a bare young tree, boats on the river in the right middle distance, the full moon above; after Cecil Lawson; published in 'L'Art'.” (http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=3425478&partId=1&searchText=john+park+Strayed&page=1)

Condition: richly inked and well-printed impression with full margins (as published) in near pristine condition.

I am selling this romantic evening etching of moonlit darkness in superb condition for the total cost of AU$212 including postage and handling to anywhere in the world.

If you are interested in purchasing this dark and evocative original print from the nineteenth century, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

Not long ago I discussed another print by John Park which also features an image of the last vestiges of light illuminating a scene. This print, however, is even more romantic, By this I mean that it not only portrays an idyllic evening scene of pastures and sheep that probably has great appeal to city folk who wistfully dream of escape to a similar open countryside, but it also offers an poetic narrative of a solitary sheep that has wandered off from its mates to gaze towards distant harbour lights.

From a technical viewpoint, this is an amazing print in its complexity of layered hatching. What I particularly like about its execution is the way that Park has created tiny rhythms in the darkness so that the image is rich in pictorial energy. Beyond the high level of skill and knowledge shown in the rendering, another quality of this print that I find worthy of close study is the delicate balance of the composition; especially the placement of the softly glowing moon.