Sir
William Nicholson
(1872-1949)
William Nicholson, painter,
print-maker and designer for the theater, studied art at the Academie Julian in
Paris. He began his professional
career as a poster designer and book illustrator, where the striking contrasts
of black and white of his woodcutting technique were used to great effect.
In 1894, Nicholson began collaborating on poster designs with his
brother-in-law James Pryde and the two became known as the Beggerstaff Brothers.
As early as 1890 the artist had begun
to make woodcuts and to experiment with the addition of subtle tints of green,
ochre and umber to his black and white compositions.
Nicholson soon became known for his skill and innovation in the medium,
elevating the art form to a high level of success, both aesthetically and
commercially. In 1897, Nicholson
produced his most celebrated portrait, Queen Victoria, which became one
of the most famous British prints ever made.
The popularity of Queen Victoria led
Nicholson to produce a series of celebrity portraits in1899.
A series of suites of woodcuts followed and were published in two forms
by William Heinemann. Limited editions, “for the connoisseur”,
were printed from Nicholson’s hand-carved wooden blocks, while the same
images were reproduced lithographically in large commercial editions.
These albums, dating from 1898, are attractive and varied.
Their titles give a good indication of their subject matter: London
Types, 1898, A Square Book of Animals, 1900, An Almanac of Sports,
1898, and an amusing Alphabet, 1898, of which the first plate, A
Was an Artist, is a self-portrait by Nicholson. Although his imagery
sometimes veers towards caricature, Nicholson’s prints nonetheless display a
knowledge of and affection for the varied characters of contemporary English
life.
Nicholson
was knighted in 1936, and his work is represented in a number of museums,
including the Tate Gallery in London.