William Seltzer Rice

ORCHID

1930

This framed engraving entitled "Birds-eye View of the Southern End of New York and Brooklyn, Showing the Projected Suspension-Bridge Over the East River, From the Western Terminus in Printing-House Square, New York" by Theodore R. Davis (1840–1894) was published as a supplement of Harper's Weekly, November 19, 1870. The print is presented in a maple frame and a double mat. The frame measures 23.5" high, 29" wide and 0.75" deep. There is a vertical center fold and additional vertical lines, where wood engraving blocks were joined for the printing process. It is in excellent condition. This framed image depicting New York in 1870 was a centerfold for the November 19, 1870 issue of Harper's Weekly. It includes the site and eventual appearance of the East River New York-Brooklyn Bridge; the name later shortened to the Brooklyn Bridge. The print was issued eleven months after the start of construction of the bridge on January 2, 1870, which would take another 12.5 years to complete. When this view was drawn, work on the bridge was all below ground, constructing the supports for the bridge’s towers. Labels in the upper portion of the print identify locations in the background including "Light Ship...

‘Corvids Watching’ 2020 Image 49.5 x 44.5 cm woodcut (available from edition of 40. 35 prints Artist’s statement My preferred method of making images is through relief printmaking. I like exploring this expressive language in a dialogue between positive and negative, representation and abstraction, control and accident. I use lino...

‘Black Birds Gathering’ 2018 Image 38 x 56 cm woodcut (available from edition of 40. 30 prints) Artist’s statement My preferred method of making images is through relief printmaking. I like exploring this expressive language in a dialogue between positive and negative, representation and abstraction, control and accident. I use lino...

Utagawa Hiroshige Dawn Inside the Yoshiwara, circa 1857 Woodblock print 11 x 7 inches Utagawa Hiroshige is recognized as a master of the ukiyo-e woodblock printing tradition, havin...

This is an original 1st octavo edition John James Audubon hand-colored lithograph entitled "yellow-breasted Rail, Adult Male in Spring", No. 62, Plate 307, from Audubon's "Birds of America". It was lithographed, printed and colored by J. T. Bowen and published in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1841. It depicts an adult male yellow-breasted Rail bird on the left standing on a rock on the bank of a body of water, looking to the right, perhaps at something in the water or on an island on the right with trees. The landscape surrounding the bird is striking. This original 1st octavo edition hand-colored Audubon lithograph...

A natural landscape painting is beautiful because it connects us to the innate tranquility and majesty of the natural world. The harmonious colors, such as the greens of forests, the...

This is an original 19th century John James Audubon hand-colored lithograph entitled "4128 Audubon, Purple Gallinule, Adult Male, Spring Plumage", No. 61, Plate 303 from Audubon's "B...

This is an original 19th century John James Audubon hand-colored lithograph entitled "Common Scaup Duck, 1. Male, 2. Female", No. 100, Plate 498 from Audubon's "Birds of America, lithographed, printed and colored by J. T. Bowen and published in Philadelphia in 1856. It depicts male and female Scaup ducks sitting on a mound, looking to the right at water. A lighthouse is seen on a point of land in the background on the right. This original hand-colored Common Scaup Duck lithograph...

This is a hand-colored engraving of a Greenfinch bird and a tree sparrow ("1, Le Friquet, 2. Le Verdier") by Francois Nicolas Martinet, plate 227 from 'Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux...

This is an original John James Audubon hand-colored lithograph entitled "Mango Humming bird, 1. 2. Males. 3. Female. Bignonia grandifolia", No. 51, Plate 251 from Audubon's "Birds of America, lithographed, printed and colored by JT Bowen and published in Philadelphia between 1870-1871. The lithograph depicts an adult male hummingbird, labelled 1, in flight above a beautiful flowering plant, a Chinese Trumpet-vine. Another male, labeled 2, is perched on a flower on the left and a female, labelled 3, is perched on a flower on the right. This hand-colored Audubon bird octavo-size lithograph sheet measures 10.25" high by 6.75" wide. It is in excellent condition. The original text pages, 185-186, from Audubon's 19th century publication are included. John James Audubon (1785-1851) was a naturalist and artist. He was initially unsuccessful financially prior to the publication of his famous work “The Birds of America”, spending time in debtor’s prison, once stabbing a disgruntled investor in self-defense. However, his obsession with birds and art motivated him to persist in his goal of documenting every bird in America via his watercolor paintings and publishing his works for all to enjoy. Audubon's first illustrations were published in a large elephant folio size. Due to their expense they were purchased in rather small numbers by the wealthy. To reach a larger audience, Audubon, with the help of his sons and J. T. Bowen, published a smaller octavo sized lithograph version, which were much more affordable. With the success of his bird projects, Audubon then turned his attention to four-legged animals. He explored the Missouri River in 1843 sketching the four-legged animals he encountered in their natural setting. His expedition covered some of the same regions recently explored by Lewis and Clark, traveling from present day Alaska to Mexico. Audubon realized that this was an opportunity to document these animals in the still relatively pristine American wilderness, before man encroached on their environment. Between 1845 and 1848, Audubon and his sons John Woodhouse Audubon...