496 Street in Porto Maurizio. John Taylor Arms.

Street in Porto Maurizio

1927. Etching on antique cream laid paper with a partial watermark, 9 5/8 x 4 1/4 inches (246 x 109 mm); full margins. Siged and dated "1928" in pencil, lower margin. Inscribed "Street in Porto Maurizio" in the plate. Edition of 100. Printed by Frederick Reynolds. Minor toning at sheet edges and at corners, with paper tape remnants from a former mount. Number 13 from the Italian Series.

[Fletcher 207]
[Illustrated: Page 4, Arms, Dorothy Noyes, "Hilltowns and Cities of Northern Italy."].

Born in 1887 in Washington DC, John Taylor Arms studied at Princeton University, and ultimately earned a degree in architecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1912. With the outbreak of W.W.I, Arms served as an officer in the United States Navy, and it was during this time that he turned his focus to printmaking, having published his first etching in 1919. His first subjects were the Brooklyn Bridge, near the Navy Yard, and it was during his wartime travel that Arms created a series of extraordinarily detailed etchings based on gothic cathedrals and churches he visited in France and Italy (the plate for Guardians of the Spire was created in 1921). He used what was available to him, namely sewing needles and a magnifying glass, to create the incredibly rich and fine detail that his etchings are known for. Upon his return to New York after the war, Arms enjoyed a successful career as a graphic artist, created a series of etchings of American cities, and published Handbook of Print Making and Print Makers (Macmillan, 1934). He served as President of the Society of American Graphic Artists, and in 1933, was made a full member of the National Academy of Design. Arms died in Fairfield, Connecticut in 1953.

Item number: 496

Price: $300.00

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