The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of April 23, 2024
An Alphabet: B is for Beggar
1897
(British, 1872–1949)
Sheet: 30.7 x 24 cm (12 1/16 x 9 7/16 in.); Image: 24.6 x 19.9 cm (9 11/16 x 7 13/16 in.)
Gift of John Bonebrake 2010.628
Catalogue raisonné: Campbell, 25C
Location: not on view
Description
Nicholson, like so many European and American artists at the time, was influenced by the nontraditional aspects of Japanese art. As in ukiyo-e, Japanese color woodcuts, Nicholson used a limited color scheme and simplified forms, silhouetting his subjects on solid backgrounds that flatten space. An Alphabet was the first of several sets of prints Nicholson made for the publisher William Heinemann, who was not solely motivated by profit; he found books a source of intellectual pleasure and, as a cultured man with cosmopolitan tastes, appreciated Nicholson’s bold and witty designs. Nicholson cut woodblocks for the images that were first issued in a small edition of hand-colored woodcuts. The designs were then published in large editions as color lithographs.- Barbara Davidson Fine Arts, Mercer Island, WA, 9 /21 /1986; John Bonebrake, Cleveland, OH
- A Passion for Prints: The John Bonebrake Donation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 2, 2011-January 29, 2012).
- {{cite web|title=An Alphabet: B is for Beggar|url=false|author=William Nicholson|year=1897|access-date=23 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2010.628