G. B. Tate & Sons Fine Art (Est. 1967) - We Buy American & European Paintings, Drawings, Fine Prints and Sculpture

Article No. 1
ENGRAVING AS AN ART FORM
A Great Art Movement Born of a Great Necessity

An genius solution to a national problem...

The widespread use of steel and burin as an engraving technique for creating artwork actually began as an exercise of necessity... initiated by none other than the US Beureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) and the need for a form of currency that could be safely used nationwide. The making of an art form as currency was a stroke of pure genius, requiring not only great artistic and educational value, but also a currency that could fulfill the needs of the country's growing economy. The answer came in the form of paper banknotes that were backed by the US Government so that interstate trade could be conducted easily and safely.

So the BEP sent out invitations across the nation to banks and other financial institutions, publishers, and artists and craftsmen to submit designs for forms of currency in various denominations. The results were stunning art forms that also fulfilled the technical requirements for a national currency that had security simply because of the unique and demanding skill required to make them.

A whole new genre of artistic expression was born...

What today is an area of niche collecting has roots in American history. As an example, this wonderful artwork of the landing of Columbus by John Vanderlyn (American, 1775 - 1852) was chosen in 1875 for the verso of the five-dollar national bank note, issued by the Vineland National Bank of Vineland, New Jersey. The depiction of the same scene, done by the BEP, revealed why the invitation was sent in the first place...

This is the design submitted by Vineland National Bank

Detail of Standing Soldiers Detail of Kneeling Boy

This is the note printed by the US Bureau of Engraving and Printing...

Click to see enlarged Center Design

The relatively poor quality of the engraving compared to the engraving submitted by Vineland Bank (and many others) revealed how underequiped and unprepared with so little infrastructure the BEP had at the time. However, with the open invitation to artists, suddenly the engraving as an art form took hold, and engraving began to develop in America as a unique form of expression, worthy of its own place in the art market.

So engraving as art grew right alongside the growth of engraving as currency...

Very quickly, this extended also to intricately engraved book illustrations, stock and bond certificates, and railroad bonds... and the 19th century became the golden era of a new art form that flourished at every level. Engraved images in both steel and wood were readily available and affordable for people of every economic level.

Albert Bierstadt, "The Rocky Mountains - Lander's Peak", Steel Engraving, 16 3/4 x 27 7/8 Inches
Click Image to Enlarge

The high bar and pinnacle of achievement in engraving came in 1865 when Albert Bierstadt (1830–1902) unveiled his huge landscape, "The Rocky Mountains, Lander's Peak" to the American audience. It was a huge success, so much so that patrons paid 25 cents admissions just to see it at public and private exhibitions, where it was displayed like a theatrical production. Bierstadt, always the entrepreneur, seized the public enthusiasm as an opportunity to secure his financial future. He did this by commissioning master engraver James D. Smillie (1807–1885) to engrave the image of the painting to be placed for sale at every exhibition.

The engraving took Smillie three years to accomplish, working only from photographs, since the painting was traveling from America to Europe on tour. Upon completion, the engraving was available in four versions, from a limited number of pencil-signed artist's proofs priced at $50 to an unlimited edition of plain proofs at $10 each. Even at these high 19th century prices, Bierstadt's artworks sold steadily and were in great demand, and his reputation grew as the premier landscape artist in America. In April of 2014, a group of these four engravings sold at Swann's Auction in New York for $27,500, and single examples of the engraving sell regularly in the marketplace from $5,000 - $8,000 or more. It is noteable that James Smillie also achieved national recognition as a creative artist and craftsman, thrust into a stature nearly equal to Bierstadt himself.

The attention given to Bierstadt's artwork spilled over into every nook and cranny of American art. With the popularity of the American landscape growing, every major artist of the nation was sought out by entrepreneurs to be published. The culmination of that came with a two-volume set of books titled "Picturesque America", describing and illustrating the scenery of America, published by D. Appleton and Company of New York in 1872 and 1874 and edited by the romantic poet and journalist William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878).

Appleton, Brooks & Son, Harper's Weekly. Fishel, Adler & Schwartz, and other publishers sought not only artists, but engravers who could create the new art form and produce artworks of such quality as to be regarded as masterworks themselves. Being mindful that the engraved compositions were never exact photographic copies of another's artwork, many American engravers in both steel and wood established themselves as masters and became well known for their creativity as much as for their craft. Engraving as an art form was passed down from father to son and from master to apprentice.

The American engraving market was thriving, but...

Then, around the turn of the 20th century, with the advent of photography and commercial printing techniques, the entire niche of art as engraving was forgotten and declined, almost to the point of extinction...

But not quite...

One day in 1986, I was visiting an antique dealer in Asheville, NC. On display was a copy of Bierstadt's Rocky Mountain engraving. It showed signs of age, but even at that, the quality of the engraving was stark and clear. The dealer quoted a firm retail price of $300 for it, and I bought it without hesitation, not knowing if I could break even, or even if I could resell it. I sent it to a trusted friend and dealer in New York, who promptly called me with an offer of $800. After a bit of haggling, I sold it to him for $1,000. Not a bad price in 1986. Today, these come up for sale with some regularity, but are now being collected by every major museum and public collection in America, as well as Europe, and are becoming increasingly rare.

The roots of true value...

With collecting once so vaguely defined by Beanie Babies or "limited edition" drink cups at fast food chains, finding true value in collecting is returning to its roots. Finally, it's as if the art world is waking up to a long-forgotten promise it made to itself - to respect and value true craftsmanship as well as creative art forms. Anyone could see the potential even as far back as the turn of the 20th century when nobody was paying attention to fine craftsmanship. But now we are beginning to collect American engravings again, to return to once forgotten art forms.

So it's here. Now take the next step...

Enjoy this collection of American 19th-century engravings in both steel and wood. We are offering these for any collector who might be looking for a genuine investment at entry-level prices while they still exist. These are all original, thoroughly curated, researched, and guaranteed to be as described. We have provided brief descriptions or comments for each one to emphasize various points of interest. Beyond that, if you have any questions or comments yourself, please drop us a note via email to gbt@gbtate.com.

Thank you so much for reading this brief history...

Mr) Gayle B. Tate

G. B. Tate & Sons Fine Art
Fountain Inn, SC