Cleveland Museum of Art

The Blue Passion-flower

Robert John Thornton

Date

1799–1807

Medium

aquatint, stipple, line engraving, etching and roulette

Culture

England, late 18th-early 19th Century

Department

Prints

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

In the 18th century, new engraving and etching techniques offered a variety of tonal effects that enhanced botanical prints. While mezzotint (in which the plate is roughened and then the engraver works from dark to light creating different values) and stipple (dots create values) make it possible to create the rich tonal scale and velvety texture of oil paint, aquatint imitates the delicacy and transparency of watercolor and ink wash.

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