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Jackson's business, therefore, did not prosper. In a last effort to stir up public interest he published, in 1754, his well-known little book, An Essay on the Invention of Engraving and Printing in Chiaro Oscuro, illustrated with eight prints in "proper colours." It sold for two shillings and sixpence. The style was rather florid but his arguments were presented with such vigor that it is easy to see why critics have found it difficult to refrain from quoting at length. The main body of text is only eight pages long, with an additional eight pages of subsidiary descriptive material attached to the pictures.
On the title page appeared his favorite passage from Pascal, used previously on the title page of the Enquiry: "Ceux qui sont capables d'inventer sont rares: ceux qui n'inventent point sont en plus grand nombre, et par consequent les plus forts." The first few pages of the Essay enlarge on this theme:
It has been too generally the Fate of those who set themselves to the Inventing any Thing that requires Talents in the Discovery, to apply all their Faculties, exhaust their Fortune, and waste their whole Time in bringing that to Perfection, which when obtained, Age, Death, or Want of sufficient Supplies, obliges them to relinquish, and to yield all the Advantages which their Hopes had flattered them with, and which had supported their Spirits during their Fatigues and Difficulties, to others; and thus leave behind them an impoverish'd Family incapable to carry on their Parent's Design, and too often complaining of the projecting Genius of that Father who has ruin'd them, tho' he has enriched the Nation to which he belonged, and to which of Consequence he was a laudable Benefactor.
He proceeds in this bitter vein for a time, then brings into the open the main purpose of the book:
Another Reason perhaps is, that the Artist being totally engaged in the Pursuit of his Discovery, has but little Time to apply to the Lovers and Encouragers of Art for their Patronage, Protection, and Supplies necessary for the carrying on such a Design, or he has not Powers to set the Advantage which would result from it in a true Light; nor communicate in Words what he clearly conceived in Idea: for certainly there are Men enough, who from the mere Desire of increasing their Wealth, would give him that Assistance, which, like the artificial Heat of a Greenhouse, would bring that Art to a Ripeness, which would otherwise languish and die under the Coldness of the first Designer, and which in this Union of Riches and Invention would yield mutual Advantage to both.
There are besides this amongst the Great, without Doubt, many who would gladly lend their Patronage to rising Arts, if they knew their Authors....
He gives as example the Duke of Cumberland, who had just sponsored a tapestry plant at Fulham, and follows with an outline of the honorable traditions of the woodcut, pointing out that Duerer, Titian, Salviati, Campagnola, and other painters drew their work on woodblocks to be cut by woodcutters, and adds that "even Andrea Vincentino did not think it in the least a Dishonour, though a Painter, to grave on Wood the Landscapes of Titian." He builds up to the statement that Raphael and Parmigianino drew on woodblocks to be cut in chiaroscuro by Ugo da Carpi.
After having said all this, it may seem highly improper to give to Mr. Jackson [he speaks of himself throughout in the third person] the Merit of inventing this Art; but let me be permitted to say, that an Art recovered is little less than an Art invented. The Works of the former Artists remain indeed; but the Manner in which they were done, is entirely lost: the inventing then the Manner is really due to this latter Undertaker, since no Writings, or other Remains, are to be found by which the Method of former Artists can be discover'd, or in what Manner they executed their works; nor, in Truth, has the Italian Method since the Beginning of the 16th Century been attempted by any one except Mr. Jackson.
We cannot help concluding that Jackson was falsifying here. Taking advantage of the public's ignorance, he was puffing up his historical importance in order to sell wallpaper. If the cognoscenti complained that he had buried the chiaroscurists after da Carpi, he always had the explanation that others did not work in the Italian style, which he neglected to describe. Jackson knew what he was doing; he was not as ignorant of art history as Hardie and Burch have surmised, although it is true that he was not always certain as to dates, since he believed Andreani worked as a contemporary of da Carpi. In the Enquiry, published only two years earlier, he had shown familiarity with the prints of Goltzius, Coriolano, Businck, Nicolas and Vincent Le Sueur, Moretti, and Zanetti, all of whom had worked to some extent in the Italian manner.
Some writers have reacted strongly to this paragraph. Losing their sense of proportion, they have been led to the conclusion that Jackson was little better than a charlatan and that his work as a whole reflected his low ethics. In some instances his culpability has been magnified: Benezit has even charged him with claiming to have invented color printing.
The worst result of Jackson's insistence on re-inventing the Italian manner was that it made a major issue of what was at best a minor honor. It minimized such technical contributions as the following, which did not follow traditional recipes:
... Mr. Jackson has invented ten positive Tints in Chiaro Oscuro; whereas Hugo di Carpi knew but four; all of which can be taken off by four Impressions only.
This technical system was used for the Venetian chiaroscuros, the portrait of Algernon Sidney after Justus Verus, and others. He did not mention that he needed a greater range of tones because he was working after oil paintings, not drawings. The introduction of full color from a series of blocks to translate water colors is also mentioned in the Essay, but with no greater emphasis than in the Enquiry. Since his wallpaper was to be done in color as well as in chiaroscuro, and since the Essay included four plates in color, it is astonishing that Jackson failed to make stronger claims for his originality in this development.
He proceeded to describe his plan to replace wallpapers in the Chinese style with his papers, which, he stated, would have no "...gay glaring Colours in broad Patches of red, green, yellow, blue &c ... [with] no true Judgment belonging to it ... Nor are there Lions leaping from Bough to Bough like Cats, Houses in the Air, Clouds and Sky upon the Ground...."
He proposed, instead, to use as subjects many of the famous statues of antiquity; the landscapes of Salvator Rosa, Claude Lorrain, Poussin, Berghem, Wouwerman, the views of Canaletto, Pannini—
Copies of the Pictures of all the best Painters of the Italian, French and Flemish Schools, the fine sculptur'd Vases of the Ancients which are now remaining; in short, every Bird that flies, every Figure that moves upon the Surface of the Earth from the Insect to the human; and every Vegetable that springs from the Ground, whatever is of Art or Nature, may be introduced into this Design of fitting up and furnishing Rooms, with all the Truth of Drawing, Light, and Shadow, and great Perfection of Colouring.
This vast gallery of art and nature was to be printed in "Colours softening into each other, with Harmony and Repose...."
Even if we feel that Jackson was building up his project to attract attention, or that he was intoxicated by the idea of creating art on such a grand scale, there is still something wrong in his conceiving it in terms of wallpaper. What is certain is that Jackson was desperately anxious to create color prints. In the absence of art patrons, wallpaper was his only excuse for continuing as an artist. As a business venture it was absurd, even tragic. There is good reason to believe that Jackson lacked capital and rented the quarters for his business: his name does not appear in the Poor Rate Book of that period in the Borough of Battersea.
From a certain standpoint, this excursion by Jackson into wallpapers featuring Roman ruins and classical antiquity appeared to come at an appropriate time. Marco Ricci's paintings as well as the somewhat later work of Pannini and Zuccarelli, and Guardi's early ruin pieces, were already known. Ricci had visited England from 1710 to 1716. Zuccarelli had come twice, once in 1742 and again in 1751 to stay until 1773, becoming a foundation member of the Royal Academy; his classical landscapes with their glib charm had a comparatively good reception. But the strongest influence was undoubtedly that of Piranesi, whose powerful etchings brought to life as never before the ravaged stones of Imperial Rome and the Campagna. Their effect was widespread and electrifying, although it was not until the 1760's that they developed their full force as an influence on English architecture and furniture design, and came to supersede the Palladian style brought to England by Inigo Jones at the beginning of the 17th century.
Jackson was too early; public taste was not yet ready for picturesque landscape or antique forms in wallpaper. But the style became dominant in the latter 18th century, particularly in England and France, and was also exported to America. While it is difficult to estimate the degree of Jackson's influence in this development, we know that no scenic papers can be dated before the Ricci prints, or before Jackson's wallpaper venture. Oman[39] comments:
The use of wall-paper to imitate large architectural designs dates, as we have seen, from the days of J. B. Jackson. During the remainder of the century this style was used almost exclusively for decoration of the halls and staircases of great houses.
[Footnote 39: Oman, 1929, p. 33.]
These papers covered rooms with landscape panoramas or with landscapes in Rococo scroll frames, relieved by decorative panels with busts, statuettes, and floral ornaments. As in preceding work, they were usually painted in opaque water colors. Most of the landscapes were loose transcriptions of designs by Pannini, Vernet, Lancret and other painters of architectural, scenic, and pastoral subjects. The treatment was generalized and superficial, the touch light and detached.
In this approach to wallpaper we see the basic ideas of Jackson, but with more emphasis on charm and elegance. Ironically, as years passed and original sources grew obscure, it became the tendency to attribute scenic papers in great houses to Jackson.[40] If he was a failure as a pioneer in the field, he remained its most highly prized legend.
[Footnote 40: An excellent description of the papers of this type imported to America is given by Edna Donnell in Metropolitan Museum Studies 1932, vol. 4, pp. 77-108.]
The Essay continued with a criticism of the current taste in wallpaper. Jackson enlarged on the lack of discrimination of persons who would prefer popular papers to his.
It seems, also, as if there was great Reason to suspect wherever one sees such preposterous Furniture, that the Taste in Literature of that Person who directed it was very deficient, and that it would prefer Tom D'Urfy to Shakespear, Sir Richard Blackmore to Milton, Tate to Homer, an Anagrammatist to Virgil, Horace, or any other Writer of true Wit, either Ancient or Modern.
He added that his prints, made in oil colors, would be permanent "whereas in that done with Water-Colours, in the common Way, Six Months makes a very visible Alteration in all that preposterous Glare, which makes its whole Merit...."
The Essay has eight plates, four of ancient statues in chiaroscuro and four of plants, animals, and buildings, in probably six colors. They were hastily done and no doubt had a rather fresh charm when published, but unfortunately the oil in the pigments was inferior, and every print in the book has darkened and yellowed badly. The prints and neighboring pages are heavily spotted and stained. This book which should have been his vindication became instead an argument for his lack of merit, especially to those who were not familiar with his other work.
We do not know how large a working force Jackson had or how many of the projected plates he planned to assign to helpers or to carry out himself. Some of the decorative borders from four blocks, blue, red, yellow, and gray-green, he undoubtedly made and printed himself. They are heavy and rather fruity in effect but are incisively drawn and cut. Also bearing Jackson's stamp are some ornamental frames with fruit and flowers in the same full range of colors.
An album ascribed to him, in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum, contains drawings of flowers, foliage, details of ornament and hand-colored designs, and a proof of the woodcut for the title page to the Suetonius of 1738. Five of the drawings are signed or initialed by Jackson, with dates from 1740 to 1753. The designs, which might have been intended for calico or wallpaper, are poorly done and not at all in his style. The drawings are competent but cannot definitely be considered his, notwithstanding the signatures, since we do not know Jackson's handwriting from other sources. The most that can be said for this album is that it probably comes from his workshop.
While producing wallpaper, Jackson still made efforts to attract sponsors for full editions of his earlier chiaroscuros. The Woman Meditating was dedicated to the Antiquarian Society of London. Christ Giving the Keys to St. Peter, rejected by Crozat, we assume, was dedicated to Thomas Hollis, whom Jackson may have met in Venice. And the Venus and Cupid with a Bow was inscribed to Thomas Brand, lifelong companion of Hollis who later added to his name the latter's patronymic. The Algernon Sidney has no dedication, but since Hollis was a Sidney specialist and edited the first one-volume edition of his works in 1769, there is a strong likelihood that the print had some connection with this liberal gentleman. Jackson made it either in Venice just before he left, or in England shortly after his arrival.
Robert Dunbar, Jr., who had inherited the wallpaper manufactory on his father's death, went out of business late in 1754. In his possession was a quantity of Jackson's papers, for which he was the main outlet. With this backlog of papers on hand, and no large distributor, Jackson's venture collapsed. This happened shortly after the publication of the Essay, and its author was never to have the opportunity to carry out his grandiose plans.
Jackson appealed to Hollis, who wrote to his former mentor, Dr. John Ward, professor of rhetoric at Gresham College and the head of a society founded by noblemen and gentlemen for the encouragement of learning:[41]
Dear Sir!— Do Me the Favour to accept these four prints of Jackson's. They are no where sold, & will soon be scarce. When You consider their Merit, I am confident You will lament the hard Fate of the ingenious Artist; who, at this Time, in his old age, & in his own Country is unprotected unnoticed, and can difficultly support Himself against immediate distress & Ruin.
I am, with great Respect,
Dear Sir!
Your obliged affect humble Servant
T. Hollis
Bedford Street, February 10, 1755
[Footnote 41: British Museum Add. mss. 6210.]
We do not know the results of this appeal. In any case Jackson seems to have faded out as an artist. Little is known of his subsequent career up to the time more than twenty years later, when Bewick mentions meeting him in advanced age. In 1761 he made a drawing of Salisbury Cathedral for Edward Eaton, "bookseller at Sarum," for a line engraving dedicated by Eaton to the Lord Bishop of Winchester. This large view included figures in the foreground in an attempt to give animation to the scene. Unfortunately the engraver, John Fougeron, was little more than an amateur. His execution was feeble and mechanical: Jackson's drawing suffered so badly that its quality cannot be determined. This print was copied on a smaller scale in a steel engraving by J. B. Swaine, published by J. B. Nichols & Son in 1843, but it was hardly an improvement.
Bewick's recollections of Jackson, written about forty years after their meeting in Newcastle, imply that Jackson stayed in that city for a period. The Town Clerk's Office, however, has no record of his residence. The following passage from Bewick's Memoir is the last evidence[42] bearing on Jackson:
Several impressions from duplicate or triplicate blocks, printed in this way, of a very large size, were also given to me, as well as a drawing of the press from which they were printed, many years ago, by Jean Baptiste Jackson, who had been patronised by the King of France; but, whether these prints had been done with the design of embellishing the walls of houses in that country, I know not. They had been taken from paintings of eminent old masters, and were mostly Scripture pieces. They were well drawn, and perhaps correctly copied from the originals, yet in my opinion none of them looked well. Jackson left Newcastle quite enfeebled with age, and, it was said, ended his days in an asylum, under the protecting care of Sir Gilbert Elliot, Bart., at some place on the border near the Teviot, or on Tweedside.
[Footnote 42: Bewick, 1925, pp. 213-214.]
If Bewick was correct in reporting that Jackson died while under the protection of Sir Gilbert Elliot, probably in a Poor Law institution, it is unlikely that the date could have been much later than 1777, the year in which Sir Gilbert died. This would place the meeting of both artists shortly before this time, when Bewick was in his early twenties (he was born in 1753). Sir Gilbert lived in Minto House, Roxburghshire, Scotland, but no evidence can be found for the supposition that Jackson died in the vicinity. No obituary has been discovered. The record of Jackson's death, if it exists, probably lies in a parish register somewhere on the Scottish border.
Critical Opinion
In most histories of prints it was considered sufficient to note that certain artists worked in woodcut chiaroscuro; the quality of such work was rarely discussed. But Jackson was an exception: something about his prints aroused critics to defense or attack. The cleavage is absolute, strange for one who was presumably a mere reproductive artist. Nothing could show more clearly the unsettled nature of Jackson's standing than a sampling of these opinions.
Horace Walpole in a letter, dated June 12, 1753, to Sir Horace Mann describing the furnishings in Strawberry Hill, commented:[43]
The bow window below leads into a little parlour hung with a stone-colour Gothic paper and Jackson's Venetian prints, which I could never endure while they pretended, infamous as they are, to be after Titian, &c., but when I gave them this air of barbarous bas-reliefs, they succeeded to a miracle; it is impossible at first sight not to conclude that they contain the history of Attila or Tottila done about the very era.
[Footnote 43: The Letters of Horace Walpole, ed. Toynbee, 1903, vol. 3, p. 166.]
Von Heinecken[44] says they are "in the manner of Hugo da Carpi but much inferior in execution." But Huber, Rost, and Martini[45] noted Jackson's independent approach:
Jackson's prints, which are certainly not without merit, are in general less sought after by collectors than they deserve. His style is original and is concerned entirely with broad effects.
[Footnote 44: Von Heinecken, 1771, p. 94.]
[Footnote 45: Huber, Rost, and Martini, 1808, vol. 9, pp. 121-123.]
Baverel[46] also had a high opinion of Jackson's work. Describing the Venetian prints, he says that Jackson "had a skillful and daring attack, and it is regrettable that he did not produce more work." Nagler's[47] criticism typifies the academic preconceptions of some writers on the subject of chiaroscuro:
Jackson's works are not praiseworthy throughout in drawing, and also he was not thoroughly able to apply the principles of chiaroscuro correctly.... Yet we have several valuable prints from Jackson....
[Footnote 46: Baverel, 1807, vol. 1, pp. 341-342.]
[Footnote 47: Kuenstler-Lexicon, op. cit.]
And Chatto[48] remarks:
They are very unequal in point of merit; some of them appearing harsh and crude, and others flat and spiritless, when compared with similar products by the old Italian wood engravers.
[Footnote 48: Chatto and Jackson, 1861, p. 455.]
With this verdict W. J. Linton[49] disagrees, saying, "...Chatto underrates him. I find his works very excellent and effective. The Finding of Moses (2 feet high by 16 inches wide) and Virgin Climbing the Steps of the Temple (after Veronese), and others, are admirable in every respect...." Duplessis[50] attacks the Venetian set heatedly and at length, yet he devotes more space to expounding Jackson's deficiencies than to discussing the work of any other woodcut artist, even Duerer or da Carpi.
[Footnote 49: Linton, 1889, p. 214. The second print mentioned is after Titian, not Veronese.]
[Footnote 50: Duplessis, 1880, pp. 314-315. Duplessis, who was conservateur-adjoint in the Cabinet des Estampes of the Bibliotheque Nationale, no doubt based his judgment on the impressions in that collection. Certainly few of these were printed by either Jackson or Pasquali.]
On the evidence we have, the new conception Jackson brought to printmaking was not fully understood until the 20th century. Pierre Gusman[51] in 1916 probably first noted the technical distinction between Jackson's work and earlier chiaroscuros.
He [Jackson] conceived his prints in a different way from the Italians, bringing in new aspects in accenting values and planes, because he did not reproduce drawings but interpreted paintings. The whites even show embossings in the paper to make the light vibrate, and a specially cut block is sometimes impressed to help in modeling the forms. Jackson, in short, very much the wood carver, combined the resources of the cameo with those of the chiaroscuro and produced curious works of combined techniques, but without equaling his predecessors, who were particularly remarkable for their simplicity of style and treatment.
[Footnote 51: Gusman, 1916, pp. 164, 165.]
One year later, in 1917, Max J. Friedlaender[52] commented that relief effects in block printing were not alien additions but natural consequences of the method. His main emphasis, we note, is on the Ricci prints.
A peculiarity of the color woodcut, which first was put up with as a characteristic of the technique but finally was enhanced and utilized fully as a means of expression, is the physical relief that stands out in thick and soft paper with the sharp pressure of die wood-blocks.... No one has employed the relief of the woodcut so consciously and artfully as the Englishman John Baptist Jackson in the eighteenth century, who, particularly in some landscapes, created most effective and richly colored sheets. He has gone so far as to express forms in "blind-printing," entirely without bordering lines or contrasting colors, merely through relief pressing.
[Footnote 52: Friedlaender, 1926 (1st ed. 1917), pp. 224-226.]
Anton Reichel's important history of chiaroscuro, with its magnificent color plates in facsimile, appeared in 1926.[53] He says of Jackson that his activity in chiaroscuro was "extraordinarily rich," that he created broad approximations of his subjects which made him neglect details, but that these were "convincingly translated into the language of the woodcut."
Five heroic landscapes after M. Ricci represent the artistic high point of his work, having a distinctive richness of color not previously attained by any other master of chiaroscuro. Each of the prints has a complete harmony of colors; the single color blocks— over ten can be counted in each print— which show in their separate tones the extraordinarily cultivated taste of the artist, give the composition a decorative effect far from any realistic imitation of nature.... The relief impressed with the blocks is so strong that, going beyond all other prior attempts of the kind, it represents an essential factor of the composition through its actual light-and-shadow effects.
[Footnote 53: Reichel, 1926, p. 48.]
Although by this time Jackson's chiaroscuros were regarded with respect and his color prints were acknowledged to be of prime importance, some of the conservative wallpaper historians were still repelled by their vigor, which did not suit genteel notions of interior decoration. Sugden and Edmondson[54] in 1925 certainly failed to understand both Jackson's work and the period in which it was done. They comment:
Jackson's bold claims to originality and merit are scarcely borne out by anything he is known to have achieved. That he had a vogue, however, seems certain, for apart from his "Essay" he has come down to us as a historical figure. To modern tastes in art many of his productions seem almost monstrous, and yet they were to some extent the expression of the time-spirit in which they were born.
[Footnote 54: Sugden and Edmondson, 1925, p. 71.]
[Transcriber's Note:
The color Plates were printed after the first page of Postscript, at the mid-sentence point "they preferred imitations of sentimental, / banal, story-telling oil paintings".]
Postscript
While Jackson had an influence on a small coterie, it did not prolong the life of the color woodcut. In Europe the medium did not survive his disappearance in 1755; no doubt it seemed to later artists intractable and lacking in nuance. The black-and-white woodcut, moreover, went into further decline and was almost entirely disregarded except for the rudest sort of work. Almost a century and a half were to pass before Gauguin and Munch swept aside old taboos and found exciting new possibilities for color in the woodcut process.
The lack of interest in the color woodcut was also the result of new techniques in the copper-plate media, techniques that could be adapted to color printing. In 1756 J. C. Francois introduced the crayon manner, an etching process that could imitate the effects of chalk and crayon drawings. During the following decades numerous technical variations were developed, the most popular being the pastel manner, the stipple, and the aquatint.
Of these methods only aquatint survived after early years of the 19th century. It was less limited than its companion processes and had wide application in rendering the effect of water-color wash. But color work in this medium, however attractive to a public that appreciated delicacy and charm, did not have mass appeal. The new audience created by the advancing Industrial Revolution wanted printed pictures of a less subtle type; they preferred imitations of sentimental, banal, story-telling oil paintings with a high, waxy finish. Neither aquatint nor other copper-plate media were suitable for these products, and color lithography did not receive serious attention until the late 1830's. The wood engraving, which had inherited the function of the woodcut and which had greater flexibility in rendering tones and details, became the logical vehicle for the new color picture.
In this situation Jackson suddenly appeared as the pioneer, as the father of printed pictures based upon paintings in oil or water colors. His intention had been translation rather than imitation and he would have abhorred the feeble new product, but this did not concern his successors— they were interested only in his technical principles. Moreover, in their naivete, they imagined they were improving on Jackson because their prints were counterfeit paintings while his were not.
The earliest picture printers therefore, used wood engraving. Among them were Frederich W. Gubitz of Berlin, who began the revival about 1815; William Savage[55] of London, a printer who published a book describing his project in 1822; and George Baxter of London, whose work dates from about 1830. All started with chiaroscuro and moved to full color from a large number of wood blocks, although in 1836 Baxter began printing his transparent oil colors over a base of steel engraving reinforced with aquatint. Only Baxter persevered and was rewarded by sensational popular success. His glassy and trivial prints with their high sweet finish enjoyed a vogue among collectors that lasted into the 20th century. In about 1860, however, he was driven from the market by the rise of a cheaper medium, chromolithography, which was responsible in the next few decades for a universal outpouring of popular bathos. This was picture printing in color geared for the mass audience.
[Footnote 55: Savage, 1822. Jackson's pioneer work is acknowledged, pp. 15-16.]
It may seem an anticlimax to trace the color woodcut from Jackson to Baxter, and finally to chromolithography, but it is not irrelevant. Although spurned by the better artists, color had too popular an appeal to be ignored. It was inescapable that Jackson's successful technical procedures should finally be adopted and corrupted in the area of commerce.
Woodcut artists up to Jackson, with few exceptions, had used color for one major purpose, to reproduce drawings in line and tone. By enlarging the conception of the color woodcut Jackson brought the primitive chiaroscuro phase of its history to an end. After him, the chiaroscuro could not be practiced again except as an archaism.[56] The way was open for the modern woodcut, although it was a long time in coming.
[Footnote 56: Only one moderately important chiaroscurist can be mentioned, John Skippe, who worked in England from the 1770's to about 1810.]
The range of Jackson's work in tone and color exceeded that of all previous woodcutters and can be divided as follows: (1) chiaroscuros— after drawings, after paintings, after his own pen and ink drawings after paintings, interpretations of engravings and etchings, and interpretations of sculpture; and (2) full color— after paintings in gouache and after his own water colors. In addition he treated pictorial subjects in flat color areas without a key or outline block, a procedure used before him only by the 17th-century Chinese; and he combined burin work with knife cutting.
But Jackson's reputation, in the long perspective, must rest upon his qualities as an artist. He had great distinction as a colorist but lacked originality as a designer and was dependent upon others, for the most part, for basic compositions. As an interpreter of these compositions, however, he was imaginative and forceful. He did not follow the example of most copper plate engravers and reproduce subjects faithfully; his conception of the woodcut as a frank medium precluded exact rendition. Except, possibly, for his first chiaroscuro, he always translated freely, with the aim of making good woodcuts rather than accurate representations of his subjects. Jackson's work after others, in short, was consciously intended as artful approximation. This emphasis on the spirit rather than the letter, together with his novel techniques, often gave his prints a somewhat hybrid character— an ambiguous look that might serve to explain the uneasy feelings of many critics. But his largeness of feeling is unmistakable, and this is what finally places him among the masters.
The color woodcut is now an important form of printmaking. For this medium in the Western world, Jackson is the main ancestral figure.
CATALOG
Jackson's chiaroscuros and color woodcuts have been grouped under three headings. The first and main section includes, besides those of unquestionable authenticity, prints which can be attributed to Jackson with some degree of certainty and those actually seen by earlier writers but which have apparently disappeared. In each case the status of the print in Jackson's oeuvre has been noted.
The second section lists pieces believed to be by Jackson's workshop. Prints that might have been done independently by close followers have been included here because we have no evidence that would permit distinctions to be drawn.
The last section lists unverified subjects attributed to Jackson in a number of museums but which have been lost through war or other causes, and doubtful titles found in Nagler and Le Blanc. In each category the prints have been listed in chronological order as far as this can be determined. The sequence of the Venetian set follows Jackson's description in the Enquiry, although the prints themselves are dated somewhat differently.
One difficulty in cataloging Jackson's work is the prevailing confusion in titling, the same prints being listed differently in different collections. This was to be expected since the artist almost invariably omitted titles. Nagler's and Le Blanc's catalogs are not descriptive and consequently there has been much guesswork in checking titles, particularly since the Venetian set and the Ricci prints are only partially listed by both writers, and not entirely correctly. Where subjects have not been recorded at all, the variation in titling has been greater.
The location of prints has been given, with the exception of those in the Venetian set and in the Essay, which are, in part or whole, in too many collections to make listing feasible. It is not to be taken as complete. Jackson prints in a number of museums, particularly in Germany, have disappeared but might turn up again; some are still packed in boxes and await return to collections. For the sake of simplicity the names of cities alone have been used with the understanding that the chief print collection is meant. Exceptions are Boston where the Museum of Fine Arts is abbreviated to MFA and the Fogg Art Museum is shortened to Fogg, New York where the Metropolitan Museum of Art is listed as MMA and the New York Public Library as NYPL, and London where the British Museum is noted as BM and the Victoria & Albert as V & A.
The woodcuts reproduced are numbered according to this catalog, and placed as nearly as possible in the same order. When prints have been listed by Nagler or Le Blanc their corresponding numbers have been included. Print sizes are given in inches, vertical sides first.
Prints by Jackson
[Transcriber's Note:
The "Inscriptions" are shown as nearly as possible as printed. Typographic features such as the use of long "s" (shown here as [s]) and variation between italic and non-italic small capitals are reproductions of the original. The ligatures [ae] and [oe] are shown in brackets. Raised dots are shown as [.].
Superscript letters are shown in {braces}. Small capitals (non-italic) are shown like this; italic small capitals like this.]
1.
Christ Giving the Keys to St. Peter, after Raphael [Le Bl. 7, N. 9]
Dimensions:
7-1/4 x 9-3/4 inches with letters, 6-1/2 x 9-3/4 inches without letters.
Blocks, 4:
Light brown, light gray-brown, gray-brown, black.
Inscription, lower left:
"Raph. Urb. inv."
Below, under border:
"Tho. Hollis Arm. Hospit. Lincoln. D. D. D. J. B. Jack[s]on sculptor."
About 1727. The dedication was added about 1750. After a drawing, now in the Louvre, for Raphael's tapestry cartoons.
MFA, BM, Berlin-Dahlem
2.
Venus and Cupid with a Bow, after Parmigianino
Dimensions:
9-3/4 x 6-1/4 inches with letters, 8-3/4 x 6-1/4 inches without letters.
Blocks, 4:
Buff, light brown, terra-cotta red, black.
Inscription, bottom:
"Tho. Brand Arm. Hospit. Temp. D. D. D. / J. B. Jack[s]on sculptor."
Left, running vertically:
"F. M. Parm. inv."
1731.
The dedication was added about 1750. Other impressions occur in a combination of green and brown and also in gray and green. Five impressions are in the British Museum including one in which two slanting vertical lines in the table immediately to the left of Cupid's left leg are omitted.
Philadelphia, MFA, BM, V&A, Berlin-Dahlem, Rotterdam, Brussels
3.
Woman Standing Holding Jar on Her Head, after Parmigianino
Dimensions:
6-3/4 x 3-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Mustard yellow, black.
Inscription, at bottom:
"Per Illustri, ac Pr[ae]claro Viro Joseph Smith / J. B. Jackson Humiliter Dedicat Donat, et / Sculpsit. 1731."
Another state has the following added in small letters:
"Antonius Ma Zanetti a Jacobo Parmense Delin."
The block for the tone is in two versions. The one illustrated is dotted in the jar to show gradations, while the other one is more loosely handled.
Free copy of line engraving by G. A. Faldoni.
BM, V&A
4.
Headpiece with Landscape and Ruins
This print is listed in the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen, Dresden, but has been lost in the war. No information as to color or size is available. The card catalogue has the following description:
"Ruins to the left. In the middle going over a river is a bridge. To the right is a city view with campanile, dome and other buildings. Dated 1731."
Probably made for use in a book. This seems to be the print described by Baverel and the "petite vue" Papillon mentioned.
5.
Woman Meditating (St. Thais?), after Parmigianino
Dimensions:
15-3/8 x 9-1/4 inches with letters, 10-3/4 x 9-1/4 inches without letters.
Blocks, 2: Pale brown, black. Also in green and blue-green.
After etching by Parmigianino (B. 10).
Inscription, left near top, running diagonally upward:
"F: M: Parmen* / Inventor / J: B: Jack[s]on Del / Sculp & excudit."
Bottom, beneath lower border:
"Societati Antiquari[ae] Londinensi / Humillime D.D.D. J.B.J
Certo da cor, ch' alto de[s]tin non Scel[s]e, Son l'impre[s]e magnanime neglette; Ma le bell' alme alle bell' opre elette Sanno gioir nelle fatiche eccel[s]e; Ne bia[s]mo popular, frale catena, Spirto d'onore, il [s]uo cammin raffrena."
This inscription was added much later, about 1750.
MFA, MMA, Philadelphia BM, Berlin-Dahlem, Vienna, Bremen, Brussels, Amsterdam, Dresden
6.
Ulysses and Polyphemus, after Primaticcio
Dimensions:
7-3/4 x 10-1/8 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Greenish yellow, black.
Inscription, bottom right:
"J. 9"
Some copies lack the inscription. This is from plate 9 of Theodor Van Thulden's 58 etchings reproducing designs by Primaticcio in Fontainebleau, published as "Les Travaux d'Ulisse" by P. Mariette in Paris, 1633.
These etchings were published again in 1740 as "Errores Ulyssis." Listed as by Jackson in Weigel's Kunstlagercatalog, 1843, vol. 2., p. 103.
BM, V&A
7.
Bookplate
Dimensions:
4-1/4 x 6 inches, approximately.
Blocks, 2:
Reddish brown, black.
Inscription left and right top, in ribbon:
"Litterarum Felicitas"
BM
8.
Judgment of Solomon, after Rubens
Dimensions:
17 x 20-3/8 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Yellow-buff, light brown, violet-brown, dark brown.
Inscription, lower right:
"Ill.{mo} et Exc.{mo} D.D. Philippo Farsetti, / Patritio Veneto, Patrono suo Benefic.{mo} / Tabulam hanc Petri Pauli Rubens. / In Ligno c[oe]lavit, et in sui Obsequii et grati Animi / Monumentum humiliter Devovet J. B. Jackson."
1735.
BM, Brussels, Venice
9.
The Visitation, after Annibale Carracci
Dimensions:
14-1/4 x 10-1/4 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Light yellow, buff, brown, dark gray.
Inscription, upper right:
"[AL]. Caratius Pinx{t}. / J: B: Jackson Fecit / Venezia 1735."
Weigel described this print as Der Besuch bei Elisabeth in his Kunstlagercatalog, 1843, vol. 2, p. 103.
Smithsonian Institution (U.S. National Museum) MFA, Philadelphia, BM, Dresden
10.
Julius Caesar, after Titian
Dimensions:
12 x 9-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Tones of brown with dark brown key block.
About 1738.
This is a free translation of an engraving by Egidius Sadeler [Le Bl. 143] after one of a series of Roman emperors attributed to Titian. The original paintings have been lost.
BM
11.
St. Rocco, after Cherubino Alberti
Dimensions:
12-1/4 x 10-1/4 inches.
Blocks, 3:
Green, reddish tan, black.
"S. Rocco" added by another hand.
Some impressions lack the inscription. Also in two colors, mustard yellow and black.
Free transcription of a line engraving by Cherubino Alberti after an undetermined painter (Le Bl. 61). A facsimile in grayed chartreuse and black was published by the Reichsdruckerei in Berlin, about 1925.
MFA, BM
12.
Statuette of Neptune, after Giovanni da Bologna [Le Bl. 19, N. 8]
Dimensions:
22-1/2 x 15-3/8 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Tones of tan and brown.
Inscription, bottom:
"Ex Prototypo [Ae]reo Joannis[.] Bolonia Duacensis in / Museo D: Josephi Smith Venetiis. / J.B. Jack[s]on Anglus Sculp & exc."
About 1738.
The first state is without letters. Third state has inscription on top of statue base,
"Gul. Lloyd Arm. D.D.D. J.B.J."
Smithsonian Institution (U.S. National Museum) MFA, Los Angeles, BM, Paris, Berlin-Dahlem, Wiemar, Amsterdam
13.
Descent from the Cross, after Rembrandt [Le Bl. 10, N. 3]
Dimensions:
14 x 11 inches (arched print).
Blocks, 4:
Yellow, gray, light brown, dark violet-brown.
Inscription, bottom left:
"Rembrandt pinxit, alt. p. 1. lat. unc x. Extat Venetiis in domo J: Smith."
Bottom right:
"J: B: Jackson figuras juxta Archetypum Sculp. & excudit. 1738."
Bottom:
"Acceperunt ergo Corpus JESU, & ligaverunt illud linteis / cum Aromatibus, sicut mos est Jud[ae]is sepelire. S. Joan. Cap. xix Ver. xi."/
Lower, with coat of arms:
"Perillustri ac Praeclaro Viro D. Josepho Smith / Insigne hoc Opus affabre in Ligno coelavit, & in sui / obseqii & grati Animi monu-mentum humiliter devovet / J: B: Jackson"
Smithsonian Institution (U.S. National Museum)
MFA, Fogg, MMA, NYPL, Chapel Hill, Philadelphia BM, Paris, Berlin-Dahlem, Vienna, Rotterdam, Hamburg, Prague
14.
Christ and the Woman of Samaria
Dimensions:
14-1/4 x 20-3/8 inches.
Blocks, 3:
Buff, greenish yellow, black.
After a Bolognese master. Weigel described this as a "beautiful" chiaroscuro by Jackson.
MFA
15.
Romulus and Remus, Wolf and Sea God
Dimensions:
2-3/4 x 7-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Green, black.
Attributed to Jackson. Probably an illustration for a book.
BM
16.
The Death of St. Peter Martyr, after Titian [Le Bl. 16, N. 10]
Dimensions:
21-1/4 x 13-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Buff, pale greenish gray, brown, dark gray.
Inscription, lower left (inside border):
"J: B: Jackson Sculp: & Excudit Venetiis 1739."
Outside bottom frame, center:
"Titianus Vecellius Cad. Invenit & Pinxit."
The painting was destroyed by fire in 1867.
17.
The Presentation in the Temple (The Circumcision), after Veronese [Le Bl. 4, N. 15]
Dimensions:
21-1/8 x 15-1/8 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Buff, reddish gray, dark gray, dark brown.
Inscription, bottom:
"Illustrissimo, & Erudito Viro Carolo Frederick Armigero, liberalium Artium Patrono, / Pauli Cagliari praeclarum hoc Opus in Ligno coelatum, in grati animi argumentum humiliter D. D. D. / J: B: Jackson."
1739.
18.
The Massacre of the Innocents, after Tintoretto [Le Bl. 5]
Dimensions:
15-1/2 x 21 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Buff, violet-gray, light brown, dark violet-brown.
Inscription, center bottom:
"Illustrissimo, / et Praeclaro Viro Dno. Dno. / Smart Lethieullier / Erudit[ae] Antiquitatis Studioso / Investigatori, Tabellam hanc / Jacobi Robusti in sui / obsequium D. D. D. J: B: Jackson."
1739.
19.
The Entombment, after Jacopo Bassano [Le Bl. 12., N. 5]
Dimensions:
21-7/8 x 15-1/4 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Buff, light reddish tan, gray, dark brown.
Inscription on urn, above lower right-hand corner:
"J: B: Jackson Delin Sculp & excudit 1739"
Across bottom:
"Insignem hanc Tabulam a Jacobo de Ponte depictam. Clarissimo Viro Jacobo Facciolato Seminarii Patavini Pr[ae]sidi; Archigymnasii ornamenta / ingenii doctrin[ae], & in primis Latina eloquentia laude celeberrimo J B Jackson D. C."
20.
Holy Family and Four Saints, after Veronese
Dimensions:
22-1/8 x 13-5/8 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Light yellow, light greenish gray, dark brown, dark gray.
Inscription, bottom center:
"Perillustri et Nobili Viro D{no} D{no} / Bourchier Wrey Barronetto / Generoso Artium Liberalium Fautori / in sui Obsequium D. D. D. J. B. Jackson / P: C: Veronese Pinxit.".
1739.
21.
The Mystic Marriage of St. Catherine, after Veronese [Le Bl. 18, N. 4]
Dimensions:
22 x 15-1/4 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Pale greenish gray, pale violet-gray, medium greenish gray, deep cold gray.
Inscription, lower center:
"Gulielmo Windham / Armigero, Artium Elegantiorum / Fautori, hanc Tabulam humillime / Dedicat / J. B. Jackson."
Bottom left:
"Paulo Veronese Pinxit J B J f 1740"
Many impressions are found in brown tones.
22.
The Crucifixion, after Tintoretto [Le Bl. 9, N. 13]
Dimensions:
21-1/2 x 16-1/4 inches (left plate), 22-3/4 x 16-3/8 inches (center plate), 21-1/2 x 16-1/2 inches (right plate).
Blocks, 4:
Buff, light brown, gray, reddish brown.
Inscription, bottom center (center plate):
"Illustrissimo & Nob: Viro D{no}: D{no}: / Richardo Boyle Comti de Burlington & Cork &c. / Magn[ae] Britanni[ae] & Hiberni[ae] Pari, Hiberni[ae] Archi-thesaurario / Heredetario, Nobilisimi Ordinis Periscelidis Equiti &c. / Optim[ae] Architectur[ae] Instauratori ac C[ae]terarum Artium Liberalium / Moecenati munificentissimo. / Singolare hoc Opus a Jacobo Robusti depictam in Schola S: Rocci Venetiis / adservatum. J: B: Jackson Anglus qui Ligno Coelavit humillime D. D. C. 1741."
On shield, bottom center (center plate):
"Honi Soit[.]Qui[.]Mal y Pense[.]"
Below shield, bottom center (center plate):
"Honor[.] Virtutis[.] Premium."
A bust portrait of a man in 18th-century dress is visible on the right knee of the woman with a child in the center background of the left sheet. It is not a likeness of Richard Boyle. Could this be a self-portrait by Jackson?
A trial proof of the key block, center sheet, is in the Rosenwald Collection, National Gallery of Art.
23.
Miracle of St. Mark, after Tintoretto [Le Bl. 15, N. 2]
Dimensions:
22-1/4 x 17-3/4 inches (left sheet), 22-1/4 x 17-3/4 inches (right sheet).
Blocks, 4:
Buff, light brown, dark brown, dark gray.
Inscription, lower left (left sheet):
"Per illustri D{no} D{no} / Eduardo Wright, / Armigero, / pulcrarum Artium ex-/cultori vel sollertissimo, / hoc Jacobi Robusti / (communiter Tintoretto) / pr[ae]clarum opus in / su[ae] argumentum ob-/servanti[ae] addicit, et / consecrat J. B. Jack[s]on."
24.
The Marriage at Cana, after Veronese
Dimensions:
23 x 16-3/4 inches (left sheet), 23 x 16-3/4 inches (right sheet).
Blocks, 4:
Buff, dark buff, violet-brown, dark brown.
Inscription, lower left (left sheet):
"Paulo Cagliari / Veron: Pinxit."
Lower right (right sheet):
"Rev{mo.} D{no.} P. / Leopoldo Capello Coenobii D: Georgii / Ord: S: Benedict: / Abbati / meritissimo. / J: B: Jackson / D. D. D."
Extreme lower right (right sheet):
"J: B: Jackson Delin: Sculp. / & excudit Venetiis 1740."
Jackson in the Enquiry (p. 48) described this print, and the two preceding subjects, as being "in Hugo's Manner with Improvements."
25.
Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple, after Titian [Le Bl. 3, N. 18]
Dimensions:
22 x 15-3/8 inches (left sheet), 22 x 17-7/8 inches (center sheet), 22 x 17-1/4 inches (right sheet).
Blocks, 4:
Light grayish umber, medium brown, dark gray, dark brown.
Inscription, lower left (left sheet):
"Opus hoc admiratione sane dignum, cunctorumq; approbatione / commendatum, ac Sacrarii Confratrum Caritatis Venetiarum / poti[s][s]imum ornamentum, a Titiano Viccellio Cadorensi, / Viro pingendi arte pr[ae] c[ae]teris celeberrimo, coloribus quam / fieri potest ad naturale expressum, adumbratumq; pro viribus / exscribere studens J: B: Jackson delineavit, excudit, et ex[s]culpsit. 1742."
Lower right, on streamer (right sheet):
"Ducit[.] Amor Patri[ae]."
Lower right, in block (right sheet):
"Per Illustri, ac Nobili Viro D:{no} D:{no} / Erasmo Philipps Barronetto / Artium zelantissimo Fautori, et de re litteraria / optime merito, Tabulam hanc tenue debit[ae] venerationis / su[ae] argumentum, emeritissimo Patrono, et Mec[ae]nati / commendat, et dicat / J: B: Jack[s]on."
26.
The Virgin in the Clouds and Six Saints, after Titian [Le Bl. 14, N. 17]
Dimensions:
23-1/4 x 14-3/4 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Buff, black.
Inscription, upper left and right:
"Ill{mo} atq; Excell:{mo} D:{no} D:{no} Philippo Farsetti Nob. Ven. / Tabellam hanc a Titiano Viccellio jam depictam in / gratissimi animi, cultusq; perpetui testimonium, / Mec[ae]nati, ac Sospiti munificentissimo / humiliat, et consecrat J. B. Jack[s]on."
Center of picture, on wall:
"Titianus Faciebat"
Bottom center:
"J. B. Jackson Del: sculp:&c. 1742."
Niccolo Boldrini's woodcut after Titian's drawing of the lower half of this subject (Le Bl. 12) evidently inspired Jackson to transcribe the entire painting as a pen-and-ink drawing in Titian's style, with a tint block added.
27.
The Descent of the Holy Spirit, after Titian [Le Bl. 13, N. 1]
Dimensions:
22-3/8 x 15-1/8 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Buff, light gray-brown, light yellow-brown, dark brown.
Inscription, upper left and right:
"Perillu[s]tri, ac Nobili Viro D:{no} D:{no} Jacobo Stewart Mackinzie, / Honorabili Magn[ae] Britan-ni[ae] Con[s]ilii Con[s]cripto Patri / Opus hoc, quod ex Titi-ani Viccellii Pictura, / ex[s]cripsit, in humillimi ob[s]equii testi-/monium devo-vebat / J. B. Jack[s]on."
28.
The Finding of Moses, after Veronese [Le Bl. 2, N.14]
Dimensions:
22 x 15 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Buff, light brown, light violet-gray, dark gray.
Inscription, lower right:
"Ill{mo} et Excell{mo} D: D: / Everardo Fawkener Eq Aur / pro Mag: Brit: Rege ad Turc: Imper: / Legato. Elegant: Artium Moecena-/ti Munificentis: in sui Obsequii. Ar-/gumentum humill: D: D: / J: B: Jackson."
Lower left:
"Ex Tabella / a Paulo Calliari Veron{s}. / depicta penes J: Smith Ven / J: B: Jackson Del Sculp & excud / 1741."
29.
The Raising of Lazarus, after Leandro Bassano [Le Bl. 6, N. 7]
Dimensions:
23-1/2 x 14-7/8 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Buff, light reddish gray, gray, dark cold brown.
Inscription, upper left and right:
"Ill:{mo} D:{no} D:{no} Vincentio Riccardi, Marchioni / Florentino, amplissimo Senatori, / am[oe]narum litterarum scientiarumq; excultori / peramantissimo, Tabellam hanc a / Leandro de Ponte colori-/bus expressam veluti exigu-/um obser-vanti[ae] su[ae] / specimen D. D. D. / J B Jackson"
Center bottom:
"J: B: Jack[s]on Del. Sculp. &c. 1742."
30.
Christ on the Mount of Olives, after Jacopo Bassano [Le Bl. 8, N. 6]
Dimensions:
22 x 15-1/8 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Buff, medium brown, gray, dark brown.
Inscription, bottom:
"Ill:{m[ae]} atq; Excell:{m[ae]} D:{n[ae]} D:{n[ae]} / Paulin[ae] Contaren[ae] / Nob: Venet[ae], aviti sanguinis ingenti splendore clar[ae], sed Virtutum nobilitate longe clariori, piissimum / hoc Christian[ae] Fidei monumentum, exiguum obsequentissim[ae] servitutis su[ae] signum, quod ex pictura / Jacobi de Ponte delineavit, et ex[s]culpsit, generossim[ae] Patron[ae], et Auspici dedicabat J: B: Jackson.".
1743.
A trial proof of the key block is in the Rosenwald Collection, National Gallery of Art.
31.
Melchisedech Blessing Abraham, after Francesco Bassano [Le Bl. 1, N. 19]
Dimensions:
22-1/2 x 15-1/8 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Buff, warm gray, brown, dark brown.
Inscription, lower right:
"Per-illustri D.{no} D.{no} / Joanni Reade / Tabellam hanc in ob[s]e-/quenti[s][s]im[ae] reverenti[ae] / specimen D. D. D. / J. B. Jack[s]on / ex Tabella penes / D. Jos{h} Smith."
1743.
32.
Dives and Lazarus (The Rich Man and Lazarus), after Jacopo Bassano
Dimensions:
22 x 15 inches (left sheet), 22 x 15 inches (right sheet).
Blocks, 4:
Buff, light brown, light brownish gray, dark brownish gray.
Inscription, lower left of left plate:
"Per-illustri, ac Honorabili Viro / D:{no} D:{no} Roberto Hoblyn, / Armigero, Magn[ae]q; Britan-/ni[ae] Consilii Conscripto Patri, / Artium, Scientiarumq; Cultori, / et M[ae]cenati, sui ergo obsequii / dicabat / J. B. Jack[s]on."
Lower right of left plate:
"Ab Exemplari, Jacobi de Ponte, quod Venetiis penes / D. Jo[s]eph Smith extat, ex[s]crip[s]it qui dicabat. / J: Ba[s]an P{x}."
1743.
33.
Algernon Sidney, after Justus Verus [Le Bl. 20]
Dimensions:
13-3/8 x 8-3/4 inches with letters, 8-1/2 x 7-1/2 inches (oval portrait only).
Blocks, 4:
Tan, light brown, light gray, dark gray.
Inscription, left and right under oval:
"Zustus Verus, pinx: J: B: J: sculp; et exc:"
In rectangle at bottom:
"At the Time when M{r}. Algernon Sidney was Amba[s][s]ador at that Court, Mon[s]ieur Terlon the French Amba[s][s]ador, had the Confidence to tear out of the Book of Mottos in the King's Library, this Verse, which M{r}. Sidney (according to the Liberty allowed to all Noble Strangers) had written in it:/
"Manus haec inimica Tyrannis En[s]e petit placidam sub Libertate quietem.
"Though Mon[s]ieur Terlon under[s]tood not a word of Latin, he was told by others the meaning of that Sen- tence, which he considered as a Libel upon the French Government and upon [s]uch as was then setting up in Denmark by French A[s][s]istance or Example."
Pref: to Acco{t}. of Denmark 4{th} Edit:P:23.
Another version with light red in place of light gray (Philadelphia, which also has set of progressive proofs).
Smithsonian Institution (U.S. National Museum) Worcester, MFA, Fogg, Baltimore, MMA, NYPL, Philadelphia BM, Berlin-Dahlem, Brussels, Frankfurt, Hamburg
34.
Antique Bust of Woman
Dimensions:
14-7/8 x 10-1/2 inches (irregular oval).
Blocks, 4:
Yellow-gray, greenish brown, gray-brown, brown.
MFA
35.
Lovers (facing right), perhaps after Piazzetta
Dimensions:
15 x 10-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 5:
Light brownish gray, darker brownish gray, medium brown, cold gray, dark brown.
Attributed to Jackson.
V&A
36.
Lovers (woman full face), perhaps after Piazzetta
Dimensions:
15 x 10-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 5:
Light brownish gray, darker brownish gray, medium brown, cold gray, dark brown.
Companion piece to previous print. Attributed to Jackson.
V&A
37.
Lamentation Over the Body of Christ
Dimensions:
20-1/2 x 13-1/4 inches.
Blocks, 5 or 6:
Blue, brown, red, flesh, gray.
Inscription, bottom:
"Et tuam ip[s]ius animam pertran[s]ibit gladius,"
This is probably an experiment in color printing made by Jackson, after his own design, before attempting the Ricci set.
BM
38.
Heroic Landscape With Dedication and Classical Ruins, after Marco Ricci [Le Bl. 21-25, N.20-25a]
Dimensions:
16-3/8 x 23-1/8 inches.
Blocks, 7 to 10:
Tones of blue, buff, gray-violet, green and dark gray.
Inscription in tablet at lower left:
"Ill{mo}, atq; Excell{mo} D{no} D{no} / Roberto D'Arcy, / Comiti de Holderne[s][s]e &c. &c. &c. / Apud Sereni[s]s Remp: Venetam pro Mag: / Britan[.] Rege Legato Extraordinario. / Hoc novi[s][s]ime excogitatum Opus in humillimi / obsequii te[s]timonium dedicabat / J. B. Jack[s]on.".
1744.
A copy in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, has D'Arcy's coat-of-arms on the entablature of the arch to the right with red and blue notes. The British Museum has a copy with brownish-red touched in with water colors in the clothing of the men under the arch.
Reichel reproduced this in full size and color (plate 98).
MFA, MMA, BM, Venice
39.
Heroic Landscape With Sheep, Statues, and Gentlemen, after Marco Ricci [Le Bl. 21-25, N. 20-25b]
Dimensions:
16-3/4 x 23-1/8 inches.
Blocks, 7 to 10:
Colors vary in different impressions.
1744.
Smithsonian Institution (U.S. National Museum)
MFA, BM, Venice
40.
Heroic Landscape with Fisherman, Cows, and Horsemen, after Marco Ricci [Le Bl. 21-25, N. 20-25c]
Dimensions:
16-1/2 x 23 inches.
Blocks, 7 to 10:
Colors vary in different impressions.
1744.
MFA, MMA, Worcester, BM, V&A, Berlin-Dahlem, Venice, Brussels
41.
Heroic Landscape with Cart and Goatherd, with S. Giorgio Maggiore in Background, after Marco Ricci [Le Bl. 21-25, N. 20-25d]
Dimensions:
16-1/2 x 23 inches.
Blocks, 7 to 10:
Colors vary in different impressions.
1744.
MFA, BM, Venice, Dresden
42.
Heroic Landscape with Women at Brook, Child Fishing, and Herdsmen, after Marco Ricci [Le Bl. 21-25, N. 20-25e]
Dimensions:
16-3/4 x 23-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 7 to 10:
Colors vary in different impressions.
1744.
Reichel reproduced this in full size and color (plate 99).
MMA, MFA, BM, Venice, Milan, Berlin-Dahlem
43.
Heroic Landscape with Watering Place, Riders, and Obelisk, after Marco Ricci
Dimensions:
16-5/8 x 23-1/4 inches.
Blocks, 7 to 10:
Colors vary in different impressions.
1744.
MFA, MMA, BM, V&A, Venice
44.
Battle near Parma, after Francesco Simonini
Dimensions:
20 x 40 inches (two joined sheets)
Blocks, 7 or 8:
Buff, brown, light green, blue-green, light transparent red, deep red, dark gray.
1752.
The only known copy is in the British Museum. Tone has darkened and paper is torn in parts. This print is described in the Enquiry. Jackson erroneously referred to this artist as "Simonnetta."
BM
45.
Ornamental Border with Fruit; Flowers, and Purple Grapes
Dimensions:
6-1/4 x 25-7/8 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Red, blue, yellow, green.
Print for wallpaper.
BM
46.
Ornamental Border with Fruit, Flowers, and Green Grapes
Dimensions:
6-3/8 x 25-7/8 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Red, blue, yellow and green.
Print for wallpaper.
BM
47.
Ornamental Frame with Flowers and Fruit
Dimensions:
24-3/4 x 18-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Red, blue, yellow, gray-green.
Print for wallpaper.
BM
48.
Ornamental Frame with Fruit
Dimensions:
25-1/8 x 17-1/4 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Red, blue, yellow, gray-green.
Print for wallpaper.
BM
49.
Ornamental Frame with Flowers and Girl's Head
Dimensions:
26 x 18-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Red, blue, yellow, green.
Print for wallpaper. Central figure is described under No. 59.
BM
50.
Dancing Nymph with Bow and Arrows
Dimensions:
11-1/8 x 6-3/8 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Olive green, black.
Print for wallpaper. Probably cut by Jackson as a guide for his workshop. See Nos. 59-74.
Smithsonian Institution (U.S. National Museum)
51.
Bust of Democritus
Dimensions:
9-1/4 x 7-1/2 inches (sheet size).
Blocks, 4:
Buff, light gray, medium gray, dark gray.
Plate from Jackson, An Essay on the Invention of Engraving and Printing in Chiaro Oscuro, 1754.
52.
The Lion
Dimensions:
9-1/4 x 7-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 6:
Yellow, red, light green, blue-gray, light gray, dark gray-green.
Plate from Jackson, Essay..., 1754. This subject was copied from plate 34 of Giorgio Fossati, Raccolta di varie favole, Venice, 1744.
53.
Building and Vegetable
Dimensions:
9-1/4 x 7-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 6:
Yellow, light green, light red, crimson, light gray, dark gray.
Plate from Jackson, Essay..., 1754.
54.
Statue of Apollo
Dimensions:
9-1/4 x 7-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Light buff, medium buff, gray, and dark gray.
Plate from Jackson, Essay..., 1754.
55.
The Farnese Hercules
Dimensions:
9-1/4 x 7-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Buff, greenish buff, gray, dark greenish gray.
Plate from Jackson, Essay..., 1754.
56.
Antique Bust of a Man
Dimensions:
9-1/4 x 7-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 4:
Buff, gray-brown, gray, dark greenish gray.
Plate from Jackson, Essay..., 1754.
57.
Pheasant and Garden Urn
Dimensions:
9-1/4 x 7-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 7:
Yellow, light green, warm gray, blue-gray, light red, crimson, dark gray-green.
Plate from Jackson, Essay..., 1754.
58.
Ruin of Garden Temple
Dimensions:
9-1/4 x 7-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 7:
Yellow, light green, warm gray, cold gray, light red, crimson, dark gray-green.
Plate from Jackson, Essay..., 1754.
Jackson's Workshop
59.
Woman Standing Holding Apron, after S. Le Clerc
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches (sheet size).
Blocks, 2:
Deep red and pale green.
Print for wallpaper. This figure appears in the center of the ornamental frame, No. 49 in this catalog, in the British Museum impression. After a plate in the series of etchings by Sebastien Le Clerc, Les Figures a la mode, 1685. The figure is reversed.
BM
60.
Female Statue with Fruit and Wheat
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Deep red and yellow.
Print for wallpaper.
Philadelphia
61.
Female Statue with Mask
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Deep red and yellow.
Print for wallpaper.
Philadelphia
62.
Queen with Armor and Model of Building
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Deep red and pale green.
Print for wallpaper. In the style of Villamena.
Philadelphia
63.
Apollo with Lyre
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Green and black. Also deep red and yellow.
Print for wallpaper.
Smithsonian Institution (U.S. National Museum) Philadelphia
64.
Woman with Shepherd's Pipe
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Deep red and yellow.
Print for wallpaper.
Philadelphia
65.
Woman with Sheet of Music and Horn
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Deep red and pale green. Also red and yellow.
Print for wallpaper.
Philadelphia
66.
Woman with Pitcher and Apron, after S. Le Clerc
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Deep red and pale green.
Print for wallpaper. After a plate in the series of 24 etchings by Sebastien Le Clerc, Les Figures a la mode, 1685. The figure is reversed.
Philadelphia
67.
Old Woman Standing, after S. Le Clerc
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Deep red and pale green.
Print for wallpaper. After a plate in the series of 24 etchings by Sebastien Le Clerc, Les Figures a la mode, 1685. The figure is reversed.
Philadelphia
68.
Lady with Staff
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Deep red and yellow.
Print for wallpaper.
Philadelphia
69.
Woman with Fruit and Basket
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Deep red and pale green. Also red and yellow.
Print for wallpaper. In the style of Villamena.
BM
70.
Woman with Branches and Incense Burner
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Deep red and pale green. Also red and yellow.
Print for wallpaper. In the style of Villamena.
BM
71.
Woman with Flowers and Vines
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Red and green. Also red and yellow.
Print for wallpaper. In the style of Villamena.
BM
72.
Standing Woman, Head Turned to Right, after Watteau
Dimensions:
11 x 5 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Green and black.
Print for wallpaper. After Boucher's etching after a drawing by Watteau (plate 216 in Jean de Julienne's compilation of Watteau's work, Figures de differents caracteres, ca. 1740).
MMA, Philadelphia, BM
73.
Lady with Fan, after S. Le Clerc
Dimensions:
11 x 4-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Green and black.
Print for wallpaper. After a plate in the series of 24 etchings by Sebastien Le Clerc, Les Figures a la mode, 1685. The figure is reversed and the fan has been shifted to the upper hand.
MMA
74.
Classical Female Statue
Dimensions:
11-1/4 x 6-1/2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Deep red and yellow.
Print for wallpaper.
Philadelphia, MMA
75.
Boy Looking Down
Dimensions:
3 x 2 inches.
Blocks, 2:
Light brown and black.
Perhaps after Piazzetta.
MFA, BM
76.
Lady with a Flower
Dimensions:
14-3/8 x 11-1/4 inches.
Blocks, 3:
Buff, light brown, brown.
Possibly after Kneller. Very weak and crude.
BM, V&A
Unverified Subjects
77.
The Annunciation, after Parmigianino
Dimensions:
6-3/4 x 4-5/8 inches.
Blocks, 3:
Tones of brown.
This is listed as Jackson's in Gutekunst & Klipstein's catalogue 40, 1938. It is described as having "the initials and an engraved letter border," but whether the initials are Jackson's or Parmigianino's is uncertain.
78.
St. Peter and St. Paul Surprised by the Executioner, after Titian [Le Bl. 17, N. 16]
Le Blanc and Nagler list this print in addition to St. Peter Martyr, but most likely it is the same subject. The title might have been taken from a museum catalogue which listed the identical print under a different title.
79.
The Entombment, after Titian [Le Bl. 11]
This is included in Le Blanc (J. C. mis au tombeau) but it seems likely that it was confused with Bassano's identically titled subject.
80.
Giovanni Gastro I De Medici
This is listed as a Jackson print in Berlin-Dahlem but has not been located.
81.
Elisabeth, Duchess of Hamilton, as a Shepherdess
This is catalogued as a Jackson print in the Dresden Kunstsammlungen but was lost in the war.
The Chiaroscuros and Color Woodcuts of John Baptist Jackson
[Transcriber's Note: The left and right halves of Plate 24 appear to be mislabeled in the original. See the html file for combined version.]
BIBLIOGRAPHY
ANONYMOUS. An Enquiry into the Origins of Printing in Europe, by a Lover of Art. London, 1752.
A rewrite of Jackson's manuscript journal, with some sections quoted verbatim. The artist's career from about 1725 to 1752 is described. The most important biographical source and a rare book.
AUDIN, M. Essai sur les graveurs de bois en France au dix-huitieme siecle. Paris, 1925, pp. 99-102.
Contains a section listing many books illustrated by Jackson in Paris, mostly in later editions.
BAVEREL, P. Notices sur les graveurs, Besancon, 1807, vol. 1, pp. 341-342.
BENEZIT, E. Dictionnaire des peintres, sculpteurs, dessinateurs, & graveurs. Paris, 1924 (1st ed. 1913), vol. 2, p. 693.
BEWICK, THOMAS. Memoir of Thomas Bewick, Written by Himself, 1822-1828. New York, 1925 (1st ed., 1862), pp. 213-214.
Mentions meeting Jackson in advanced age, about 1777. The book contains much personal reminiscence and observation on life but little concrete detail for the student.
BIGMORE, E. C. and WYMAN, C. W. H. A Bibliography of Printing. London, 1880-1886, vol. 1, pp. 201, 365.
The most extensive annotated listing of books relating to printing. Has a description of Jackson's Essay.
BRULLIOT, F. Dictionnaire des monogrammes. Munich, 1832-1834, vol. 2, Nos. 1288, 1352, 1535.
BRYAN, M. Dictionary of Painters and Engravers. London and New York, 1904 (1st ed. 1816), vol. 3, p. 99.
The most comprehensive biographical dictionary of artists in the English language.
BURCH, R. M. Colour Printing and Colour Printers. London, 1910, pp. 72-77.
The most comprehensive general survey, but with more than occasional inaccuracies. There is a lack of sensitivity in art matters. These comments apply also to the section on Jackson.
CHATTO, W., and JACKSON, J. A Treatise on Wood-Engraving. London, 1861 (1st. ed. 1839), pp. 453-457.
The classic work on the subject; scholarly, objective, and voluminously illustrated. Has the fullest early account of Jackson and is the basis for most later studies of the artist.
CUST, L. "John Baptist Jackson," Dictionary of National Biography. New York and London, 1885-1900, vol. 29, p. 100.
DE BONI, F. Biografia degli artisti. Venice, 1840, p. 499.
DONNELL, EDNA. "The Van Rensselaer Wall Paper and J. B. Jackson— A Study in Disassociation." Metropolitan Museum Studies, 1932, vol. 4, pp. 77-108.
The most scholarly study of Jackson's wallpaper career. Shows, by an examination of styles, that Jackson could not have made the wallpapers indiscriminately attributed to him.
DUPLESSIS, G. Histoire de la gravure. Paris, 1880, pp. 314-315.
ENTWISLE, E. A. The Book of Wallpaper. London, 1954, pp. 65-67, 76.
Contains new information on wallpaper manufacturers in London during the 18th century, some of it bearing on Jackson.
FRANKAU, J. Eighteenth-Century Colour-Prints. London, 1907, pp. 42-46.
Has an appreciative section on Jackson, highly romanticized.
FRIEDLAENDER, M. J. Der Holzschnitt: Handbuecher der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin. Berlin and Leipzig, 1926 (1st ed. 1917), pp. 224-226.
FUESSLI, J. C. Raisonirendes Verzeichniss der vornehmsten Kupferstecher. Zurich, 1771, pp. 353-354.
FURST, H. The Modern Woodcut. New York, 1924, pp. 88, 99.
A fine general survey, although judgments are occasionally dogmatic.
GALLO, R. L'Incisioni nel '700 a Venezia e a Bassano. Venice, 1941, pp. 22-23.
A solid study containing some new material on the artists of the period.
GORI GANDELLINI, G. Notizie Istoriche degl' Intagliatori. Siena, 1771, vol. 2, p. 156.
GUSMAN, P. La Gravure sur bois et d'epargne sur metal du XIVe au XXe siecle. Paris, 1916, pp. 32, 164-165, 193, 252.
HARDIE, MARTIN. English Coloured Books. New York and London, 1906, pp. 19-27.
While a brief but sensitive account of Jackson is given, the main emphasis is on the Essay as an illustrated book.
HEINECKEN, C. H. VON. Idee generale d'une collection complette d'estampes. Leipzig and Vienna, 1771, p. 94.
HELLER, J. Geschichte der Holzschneidekunst. Bamberg, 1823, pp. 295-296. Praktisches Handbuch fuer Kupferstichsammler. Leipzig, 1850, p. 334.
Lists 10 chiaroscuros by Jackson.
HELLER, J., and ANDRESEN, A. Handbuch fuer Kupferstichsammler. Leipzig, 1870, vol. 1, pp. 706-707.
Lists 11 prints by Jackson.
HUBER, M. Notices generales des graveurs et des peintres. Dresden, 1787, pp. 676, 698.
HUBER, M., and ROST, C. C. Handbuch fuer Kunstliebhaber und Sammler. Zurich, 1808, vol. 9, pp. 129-131.
HUBER, M., ROST, C. C., and MARTINI, C. G. Manuel des curieux et des amateurs d'art. Zurich, 1797-1808, vol. 9, pp. 121-123.
First catalog of Jackson's work; lists 10 titles.
JACKSON, JOHN BAPTIST. An Essay on the Invention of Engraving and Printing in Chiaro Oscuro, as Practised by Albert Durer, Hugo di Carpi, &c., and the Application of It to the Making Paper Hangings of Taste, Duration, and Elegance. London, 1754.
Written by Jackson to promote his wallpapers, it repeats some of his assertions in the Enquiry but gives little detail concerning his career. It is important as an illustrated book and as an early document in the history of wallpaper. The prints have suffered from the use of an inferior oil vehicle.
KAINEN, JACOB. "John Baptist Jackson and his Chiaroscuros." Printing and Graphic Arts, vol. 4, no. 4, 1956, pp. 85-92.
An excerpt from the present work, then in progress, in a different version.
KREPLIN, B. C. "John Baptist Jackson," in Thieme, U., and Becker, F., Allgemeines Lexikon der Bildenden Kuenstler. Leipzig, 1907-1950, vol. 18, pp. 224-225.
The most comprehensive biographical dictionary of artists. Has a good article on Jackson and a small bibliography.
LE BLANC, C. Manuel de l'amateur d'estampes. Paris, 1854-1888, vol. 2, p. 416.
Particularly valuable for its catalogs of the work of engravers. With Nagler, contains the largest listing of Jackson's prints.
LEVIS, H. C. A Descriptive Bibliography of Books in English Relating to Engraving and the Collection of Prints. London, 1912, pp. 182-184.
LEWIS, C. T. C. The Story of Picture Printing in England During the 19th Century; or Forty Years of Wood and Stone. London, 1928, pp. 2, 21, 26, 34, 40, 43, 195.
Written in an oppressively popular style with emphasis on Baxter and Le Blond. Jackson is mentioned often but sketchily as the distant ancestor of "picture printing."
LINTON, W. The Masters of Wood Engraving. London, 1889, p. 214.
Discusses the subject from the standpoint of a late-19th-century technician. Nevertheless is open-minded, if slightly superior, about the chiaroscuro woodcut.
LONGHI, G. Catalogo dei piu celebri intagliatori in legno ed in rame. Milan, 1821, p. 51.
MABERLY, J. The Print Collector. London, 1844, p. 130.
The first American edition, New York, 1880, edited by Robert Hoe, copies the annotated description of the Essay from Bigmore and Wyman.
MCCLELLAND, N. Historic Wall-Papers. Philadelphia and London, 1924, pp. 47, 79, 141-154, 165, 324-329, 423.
Makes many references to Jackson, largely inaccurate.
MIREUR, H. Dictionnaire des ventes d'art fait en France. Paris, 1911-1912, vol. 4, p. 23.
MUELLER, F., and KLUNZINGER, K. Die Kuenstler Aller Zeiten und Voelker. 1857-1864, vol. 2, p. 430.
MUELLER, H. A., MUELLER, H. W., and SINGER, H. W. Allgemeines Kuenstler-Lexicon. Frankfurt, 1895-1901, vol. 2, p. 240.
NAGLER, G. K. Allgemeines Kuenstler-Lexicon. Munich. 1835-51, vol. 6, pp. 383-384.
The most extensive of all dictionaries of artists up to the time of Thieme and Becker, q.v. With Le Blanc, has the fullest catalog of Jackson's prints.
Die Monogrammisten, Munich, 1858-1879, vol. 3, pp. 730, 836.
OMAN, C. C. Catalogue of Wall-Papers. London, Victoria and Albert Museum, 1929, pp. 24-25, 33.
A good historical account which includes Jackson's contributions to the rise of scenic wallpaper.
PALLUCCHINI, RODOLFO. Mostra degli incisori Veneti del settecento. Venice, 1941, ed. 2, pp. 16, 103-104.
Catalog of the exhibition held in Venice in 1941.
PAPILLON, J. M. Traite historique et pratique de la gravure en bois. Paris, 1766, vol. 1, pp. 323-324, 327-329, 415.
Contains personal recollections of Jackson and his career in France. The book is valuable as the first technical treatise on the woodcut, but the historical section is notoriously inaccurate and heavily weighted with Papillon's prejudices.
PERCIVAL, MACIVER. "Jackson of Battersea and his Wall Papers." The Connoisseur, 1922, vol. 62, pp. 25-36.
REDGRAVE, S. Dictionary of Artists of the English School. London, 1874, p. 227.
REICHEL, ANTON. Die Clair-Obscur-Schnitte des XVI., XVII. und XVIII. Jahrhunderts. Zurich, Leipzig, and Vienna, 1926, p. 48.
The finest work on chiaroscuro, with 100 magnificent facsimile illustrations in color, fully described, and black-and-white illustrations in the text. Reproduces two of Jackson's Ricci prints in actual size and color.
SAVAGE, W. Practical Hints on Decorative Printing. London, 1822, pp. 15-16.
Savage was the first writer to acknowledge Jackson's contributions to color printing, although he was critical of his inks. The book attempts to show, through examples, that color printing from woodblocks is practical for a variety of purposes.
SMITH, J. The Printers Grammar. London, 1755, p. 136.
SPOONER, S. Dictionary of Painters, Engravers, Sculptors & Architects. New York, 1853, vol. 1, pp. 420-421.
STRUTT, J. Dictionary of Engravers. London, 1785-86, vol. 2, p. 41.
SUGDEN, A. V., and EDMONDSON, J. L. A History of English Wallpaper. New York and London, 1925, pp. 61-71.
The most thorough book on the subject although the treatment of Jackson is narrowly confined, like most wallpaper books, to his shortcomings as a decorator for elegant homes.
WALPOLE, HORACE. Anecdotes of Painting in England. A Catalogue of Engravers who Have Been Born, or Resided in England. Digested from the Manuscript of George Vertue. London, 1765 (1st ed. 1762), p. 3.
Important as the first compilation on this subject.
The Letters of Horace Walpole. Edited by Mrs. Paget Toynbee, Oxford, 1903-05, vol. 3, p. 166.
WEIGEL, R. Kunstlagercatalog. Leipzig, 1837-1866, vol. 2, pp. 103, 105; vol. 4, p. 52.
WICK, PETER A. Suite of Six Color Woodcuts of Heroic Landscapes by John Baptist Jackson after Marco Ricci. 1955, 12 pp.
Manuscript read at the XVIII Congres International d'Histoire de L'Art, Venice, Sept. 12-18, 1955. The first good, scholarly study of the Ricci prints. Traces Jackson's career briefly but accurately.
Y. D. Historical Remarks on Cutting in Wood. The Gentleman's Magazine, February 1752, vol. 22, pp. 78-79.
The first published statement of Jackson's contribution as a woodcutter.
ZANETTI, A. M. Della pittura veneziana. Venice, 1792. (1st ed. 1771), vol. 2, pp. 689, 716. Zanetti was the librarian of St. Mark's and the nephew of the famous chiaroscurist.
ZANI, D. P. Enciclopedia metodica delle belle arti. Parma, 1817-24, vol. 11, p. 47.
ZANOTTO, F. Nuovissimo guida di Venezia. Venice, 1856, p. 320, note 3.
INDEX TO PLATES
1. Christ Giving the Keys to St. Peter, after Raphael, 55 (color), 99 2. Venus and Cupid with a Bow, after Parmigianino, 56 (color), 100 3. Woman Standing Holding Jar on Her Head, after Parmigianino, 101 5. Woman Meditating (St. Thais?), after Parmigianino, 57 (color), 102 6. Ulysses and Polyphemus, after Primaticcio, 104 7. Bookplate, 103 8. Judgment of Solomon, after Rubens, 105 9. The Visitation, after Annibale Carracci, 106 10. Julius Caesar, after Titian, 107 11. St. Rocco, after Cherubino Alberti, 108 12. Statuette of Neptune, after Giovanni da Bologna, 109 13. Descent from the Cross, after Rembrandt, 58 (color), 112 14. Christ and the Woman of Samaria, 110 15. Romulus and Remus, Wolf and Sea God, 111 16. The Death of St. Peter Martyr, after Titian, 113 17. The Presentation in the Temple (The Circumcision), after Veronese, 114 18. The Massacre of the Innocents, after Tintoretto, 115 19. The Entombment, after Jacopo Bassano, 118 20. Holy Family and Four Saints, after Veronese, 119 21. The Mystic Marriage of St. Catherine, after Veronese, 120 22. The Crucifixion, after Tintoretto, left sheet, 64 (color), 116 center sheet, 37 (proof of key block), 64 (color), 116 right sheet, 65 (color), 117 23. Miracle of St. Mark, after Tintoretto, left sheet, 122 right sheet, 123 24. The Marriage at Cana, after Veronese, left sheet, 124 right sheet, 125 25. Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple, after Titian, left sheet, 136 center sheet, 136 right sheet, 137 26. The Virgin in the Clouds and Six Saints, after Titian, 121 27. The Descent of the Holy Spirit, after Titian, 126 28. The Finding of Moses, after Veronese, 127 29. The Raising of Lazarus, after Leandro Bassano, 128 30. Christ on the Mount of Olives, after Jacopo Bassano, 38 (key block), 132 31. Melchisedech Blessing Abraham, after Francesco Bassano, 129 32. Dives and Lazarus (The Rich Man and Lazarus), after Jacopo Bassano, left sheet, 130 right sheet, 131 33. Algernon Sidney, after Justus Verus, 134 34. Antique Bust of Woman, 135 35. Lovers (facing right), perhaps after Piazzetta, 138 36. Lovers (woman full face), perhaps after Piazzetta, 139 37. Lamentation Over the Body of Christ, 133 38. Heroic Landscape With Dedication and Classical Ruins, after Marco Ricci, 140 39. Heroic Landscape With Sheep, Statues, and Gentlemen, after Marco Ricci, 141 40. Heroic Landscape With Fisherman, Cows, and Horsemen, after Marco Ricci, 40 (color), 41 (color, detail), 142 41. Heroic Landscape with Cart and Goatherd, with S. Giorgio Maggiore in Background, after Marco Ricci, 143 42. Heroic Landscape with Women at Brook, Child Fishing, and Herdsmen, after Marco Ricci, 144 43. Heroic Landscape with Watering Place, Riders, and Obelisk, after Marco Ricci, 59 (color), 145 44. Battle near Parma, after Francesco Simonini, 146, 147 (detail) 45. Ornamental Border with Fruit, Flowers, and Purple Grapes, 148 46. Ornamental Border with Fruit, Flowers, and Green Grapes, 148 47. Ornamental Frame with Flowers and Fruit, 149 48. Ornamental Frame with Fruit, 150 49. Ornamental Frame with Flowers and Girl's Head, 62 (color), 151 50. Dancing Nymph with Bow and Arrows, 152 51. Bust of Democritus, 153 52. The Lion, 154 53. Building and Vegetable, 63 (color), 155 54. Statue of Apollo, 156 55. The Farnese Hercules, 157 56. Antique Bust of a Man, 158 57. Pheasant and Garden Urn, 159 58. Ruin of Garden Temple, 160 59. Woman Standing Holding Apron, after S. Le Clerc, 62 (color), 151 60. Female Statue with Fruit and Wheat, 161 61. Female Statue with Mask, 161 62. Queen with Armor and Model of Building, 162 63. Apollo with Lyre, 162 64. Woman with Shepherd's Pipe, 163 65. Woman with Sheet of Music and Horn, 163 66. Woman with Pitcher and Apron, after S. Le Clerc, 164 67. Old Woman Standing, after S. Le Clerc, 164 68. Lady with Staff, 165 69. Woman with Fruit and Basket, 165 70. Woman with Branches and Incense Burner, 166 71. Woman with Flowers and Vines, 166 72. Standing Woman, Head Turned to Right, after Watteau, 167 73. Lady with Fan, after S. Le Clerc, 167 74. Classical Female Statue, 168 75. Boy Looking Down, 170 76. Lady with a Flower, 169
INDEX
Alberti, Cherubino, 30 Albrizzi, G. B., 26, 28, 29 Altdorfer, Albrecht, 36n Andreani, Andrea, 10, 11, 12n, 31, 45 Annison, M., 22
Baglioni, 27, 29 Baldung, Hans, 10 Bartolozzi, Francesco, 4 Bassano, Jacopo, 32 Baxter, George, 67 Beccafumi, Domenico, 10 Berghem, Nicolaes, 45 Bewick, Thomas, 5, 9n, 16, 17, 28, 35, 49, 50 Bibbia del Nicolosi, 26 Biblia Sacra (published by Hertz), 28 Bloemart, Abraham, 22 Cornelius, 22 Frederick, 22 Boldrini, Niccolo, 11 Bologna, Giovanni da, 31 Book of St. Albans, 7 Brand, Thomas, 48 Bromwich, Thomas, 42 Burgkmair, Hans, 10 Businck, Ludolph, 11, 28, 45
Cabinet Crozart, 22, 23 Callot, Jacques, 4, 18, 30 Campagnola, Domenico, 44 Canaletto, 45 Carpi, Ugo da, 10, 11, 25, 26, 41, 44, 45, 51, 52 Carracci, Agostino, 32n Caslon, William, 16 Caylus, Anne Claude Phillipe, Count de, 22, 23, 28 Chinese woodcuts, 36, 68 Coriolano, Bartolomeo, 11, 45 Giovanni Battista, 11 Coypel, Charles, 28 Cranach, Lucas, 9 Croxall's Aesop's Fables, 14, 15, 31 Crozat, Pierre, 22, 23, 48
D'Arcy, Robert, 35 Darley, Matthias, 42 Dunbar, Robert, 30 Robert, Jr., 42, 48 Duerer, Albrecht, 4, 9n, 41, 44, 52
Eaton, Edward, 49 Ecman, Edouard, 30 Edwards, George, 5n "Ekwitz," 14 Elliot, Sir Gilbert, 50 Enquiry into the Origins of Printing in Europe (publication), 41 Essay on the Invention of Engraving and Printing in Chiaro Oscuro (publication), 43
Faldoni, Giovanni Antonio, 30 Farsetti, Filippo, 26, 27 Francois, J. C., 54 Frederick, Charles, 31 Fougeron, John, 49
Gauguin, Paul, 4, 54 George III, 31 Goltzius, Hendrick, 11 Hubert, 22, 29, 45 Goya, Francesco, 4 Guardi, Francesco, 46 Gubitz, Frederich W., 67
Hogarth, William, 17 Hollis, Thomas, 48, 49
Istoria del Testamento Vecchio e Nuovo, 26
Jackson, John Baptist contributions to chiaroscuro and color woodcut, 5, 6, 12, 68 critical opinions of his work, 7, 51-54 first work in chiaroscuro, 11, 12, 23 birth, 14 training, 14, 15 early work in London, 15, 17 arrival in Paris, 17 association with Papillon, 18-22 association with de Caylus and Crozat, 22, 23 Papillon's criticism of Jackson, 19, 20 arrival in Venice, 25 association with Zanetti, 25, 26 first chiaroscuros in Venice, 26 first chiaroscuro reproducing a painting, 27 early plans for wallpaper, 30 influence of line engraving, 29, 30 association with Joseph Smith, 30, 31, 32 production of the Venetian set, 31, 32, 33 production of the Ricci set, his first prints in full color, 33, 35, 36 use of embossing, 33, 36 marriage, 40 return to England, 40 designs for calico, 40 career as a maker of wallpaper, 40-50 publication of An Enquiry into the Origins of Printing in Europe, 41 publication of An Essay on the Invention of Engraving and Printing in Chiaro Oscuro, 43 pioneer of scenic wallpaper, 46, 47 album ascribed to him, 48 collapse of wallpaper venture, 48, 49 meeting with Bewick, 49, 59 last days, 50 Walpole's criticism, 51 Janinet, Jean Francois, 4 Japanese woodcuts, 4, 33n, 36 Jegher, Christoffel, 11 Jones, Inigo, 46
Kirkall, Elisha, 5, 11, 14, 15, 22, 33, 41 Knapton, George, 33
Lallemand, George, 11, 28 Lancret, Nicolas, 47 Le Blon, Jacob Christoph, 36, 39 Le Clerc, Sebastien, 18, 19, 30 Le Sueur, Nicolas, 11, 22, 23, 28, 45 Vincent, 11, 18, 23, 45 Lethieullier, Smart, 31 Lewis, John, 23, 25 Liber selectarum cantionum, Senfel, 7n Lorrain, Claude, 45
Mantegna, Andrea, 12n Mariette, Pierre-Jean, 25, 26, 28 Mattaire's Latin Classics, 14, 31 Mellan, Claude, 30 Moreelse, Paulus, 11 Moretti, Giuseppe Maria, 25, 45 Munch, Edvard, 4, 54
Negker, Jost de, 10 Newdigate, Sir Roger, 32n
Pannini, Giovanni Paolo, 45, 46, 47 Papillon, Jean (father of J. M.), 19, 21, 22 Jean Michel, 6, 14, 15, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 28, 35 Parmigianino, 10, 22, 26, 44 Pasquali, J. B., 32, 40 Pezzana, 27, 28, 29 Piranesi, Giovanni Battista, 46 Pond, Arthur, 33 Poussin, Nicolas, 45
Raphael, 10, 11, 22, 23, 44 Ratdolt, Erhard, 7n Rembrandt, 4, 31, 32 Ricci, Marco, 6, 35, 36, 46, 47, 53 Robert, P. P. A., 22 Romano, Giulio, 11, 23 Rosa, Salvator, 45 Rubens, Peter Paul, 27
Sadeler, Egidius, 29 Salviati, Francesco, 44 Savage, William, 67 Simonini, Francesco (erroneously called "Simonnetta"), 42 Skippe, John, 68n Smith, Joseph, 30, 31 Suetonius' Lives of the Twelve Caesars, 29, 34, 48 Swaine, J. B., 49
Tintoretto, 32 Titian, 11, 29, 32, 44 Traite historique et pratique de la gravure en bois, 6, 14, 19, 20, 21 Trento, Antonio da, 10
"Urban, Sylvanus," 41
Vallotton, Felix, 4 Velasquez, 42 Vernet, Claude Joseph, 47 Veronese, 52 Verus, Justus, 45 Vicentino, Giuseppe Niccolo, 10, 44 Villamena, Francesco, 30 Vouet, Simon, 11
Wallpaper, first use in England, 40 Walpole, Horace, 8, 31, 51 Ward, Dr. John, 49 Wechtlin, Hans, 10 Weiditz, Hans, 7n Whistler, James M., 5n Wouwerman, Philips, 45 Wrey, Sir Bouchier, 32n
Zanetti, Count Antonio Maria, 11, 25, 26, 45 Zuccarelli, Francesco, 46
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Errors and Inconsistencies
pretentions to literary culture [spelling unchanged] also a woodcutter who copied Le Clerc [name printed without space]
Catalog:
Punctuation in the Inscriptions is unchanged. 5, Inscription: F: M: Parmen* / Inventor [partially illegible] 9, Inscription: [AL] [A+L ligature sharing vertical line] 13, Inscription: Perillustri ac Praeclaro Viro D. Josepho Smith [printed as "Viro D. Josepho" Smith with misplaced small capitals, but see Plate 13] 16, St. Peter; 21, St. Catherine [period after "St." invisible, but see Plate captions] 39: Lines "1744" and "Colors vary..." reversed in printed text.
Bibliography:
[J. B. Jackson] ... as Practised by Albert Durer [no umlaut]
Index to Plates:
16, The Death of St. Peter Martyr, after Titian [printed with italic "after"]
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