Kew Ait
Sir Francis Seymour Haden 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."
River bank with two small boats moored at left; trees and vegetation reflected in the water. 'Isleworth' (S. 76a) and 'Kew Ait' (S. 76.B) used to be a single print (S. 76) before Haden decided to divide them.
"First.-The reflections of the trees to the left replaced by a shelving bank with reeds, and two boats half stranded, one white, the other dark, the latter with a mast inclining towards the left. The bare space in the distance is filled in with fresh work, and there are birds again in the sky."
[Source: Harrington, p. 42]
"State III (H1). The reflections of the trees on the left removed and replaced by a flat bank with reeds and two boats half stranded, one white, the other dark with a mast leaning towards the left. The central distance is filled in with the new work, cloud in clearing removed, and there are birds in the sky."
[Source: Schneiderman, p. 189]
