The Mouth of the Thames, after Turner, No. 1
Etcher Sir Francis Seymour Haden British
After Joseph Mallord William Turner British
Not on view
Seymour Haden was the unlikely combination of a surgeon and an etcher. Although he pursued a very successful medical career, he is mostly remembered for his etched work as well as for his writings on etching. He was one of a group of artists, including James McNeill Whistler (1834–1903) and Alphonse Legros (1837–1911), whose passionate interest in the medium led to the so-called etching revival, a period that lasted well into the twentieth century. The extolling of etching for its inherent spontaneous qualities reached its pinnacle during this time. While the line of the etching needle, Haden wrote, was "free, expressive, full of vivacity," that of the burin was "cold, constrained, uninteresting," and "without identity.
Sailing ships in a choppy sea; some of the ships' cordage drawn with drypoint; etched border lines.
"State II (H1). The inscription 'Etched and Engraved by 'F.S. Haden' removed. There is additional drypoint work on bow and top of sails of the frigate in full sail at the center of the plate."
[Source: Schneiderman, p. 405]
"Published State: First.- The inscription on the right removed."
[Source: Harrington, p. 119]
