format:25 x 19 cm, in light passe-partout,heliogravure (visible plate imprint), cardboard signed l.d. "W.Wodzinowski"
Under the composition signature of the artistic lithography workshop " Meisenbach Riffarth & Co".
The graphic comes from a portfolio illustrating the works of Sienkiewicz published in 1898.
Georg Meisenbach was a German engraver and inventor of the autotype. In 1883 Meisenbach & Co. merged with Heinrich Riffarth & Co. to form Meisenbach Riffarth & Company, a well-known European graphic arts firm.
Heliogravure (gr.helio + gravure) - a type of graphic intaglio printing technique, similar to aquatint, involving the photographic transfer of an image onto a metal plate (usually copper) and etching with photosensitive emulsion so that the brightest areas create the shallowest recesses. Invented in 1879.Printing is done in a special hand press. Heliogravure, which was widespread in the 19th century, was later supplanted by rotogravure, as heliogravure is an expensive and very time-consuming method. Heliogravure is used only when it is necessary to create a small number of copies of very high quality.
Wincenty Wodzinowski - In 1880-1881 he studied at the Drawing Class under Wojciech Gerson in Warsaw, in 1881-1889 at the School of Fine Arts in Cracow under Leopold Löffler, Władysław Łuszczkiewicz and Jan Matejko. In 1890-1892 he supplemented his knowledge at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich. In 1892 he returned to Cracow, and for nearly 20 years (1899-1916) taught at the Adrian Baraniecki Higher Courses for Women. In 1894 he received a silver medal at an exhibition in Chicago.He painted landscapes, portraits, realistic and symbolic compositions, rural genre scenes. In later years he serially repeated the same motifs.During World War I he served in the Polish Legions. On November 1, 1916, he was appointed a chancellery ensign. In the spring of 1917 he served in the National Enlistment Inspectorate.In 1923 he was elected honorary president of the Association of Polish Artists in Krakow.
