A. Fisher

Artist Sir William Nicholson (Newark-on-Trent, England, 1872 - 1949)

Date1897

Mediumcolour woodcut on laid paper

ClassificationsPrints

DimensionsPlate Size: Height: 10.8 cm, Width: 10.2 cm

AcquisitionPurchased in 1977.

CopyrightOut of copyright - CC0

LocationView by Appointment - Aberdeen Treasure Hub

Object numberABDAG000010

Keywords

About MeOne of the foremost English artists of his time William Nicholson married fellow painter Mabel Pryde in 1893. Nicholson and his brother-in-law, James Pryde then collaborated, under the name J. & W. Beggarstaff, creating a series of posters, with strong, simple designs and stencilled colours, paper cut-outs and collage, which brought a new dimension to British poster art.

After the birth of the Nicholson's first child Ben (who was also to become a famous artist), William Nicholson began to concentrate on colour woodcuts. With the help of James McNeill Whistler, Nicholson was contracted by the publishers, Heinemann, to produce a series of woodcut illustrations. Between 1897 and 1900 he illustrated numerous books on such subjects as 'An Alphabet' and 'Portraits'. His most famous woodcut illustration - a portrait of Queen Victoria for W.E. Henley's 'New Review' - became one of the most widely known images of the monarch. By 1900 his success culminated in him being awarded a gold medal, at the age of twenty-eight, for his woodcuts at the Paris Exposition Universelle.