Etudes d'Arbres Dessinées d'après Nature par A. de Fiennes. Recueil Utile aux Amateurs, aux Jeunes Artistes et aux Eleves des Ecoles Centrales
Fiennes, A. de or Defiennes
Paris. Chez l'Auteur / Chez Ravault. 1801
Sold
A wonderful unsophisticated set of de Fiennes' very scarce engraved plates of trees.
These rare engravings, printed at the turn of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, present something of an enigma. Produced in an elegant format and issued in parts - as the present set attests - the engravings were intended, as indicated in the title, to serve as models for amateurs, students and young artists. Each of the plates was engraved (see below) after Defiennes or de Fiennes' original drawings by various engravers but we can find no trace of de Fiennes (or indeed Defiennes) in the standard literature: Beraldi, Delteil, Thieme-Becker and Benezit have no entries for such an artist and it seems likely that this is the artist's only work; it is also unclear from the initial 'A' whether de Fiennes is male or female.
We can trace one copy aside from the present example, that held in the Bibliothèque Nationale de France (with each plate mounted on larger sheets) but as each of the plates bears the legend 'Déposé à la Bibliothèque Nationale' this is hardly a surprise. A further copy - perhaps even this copy - is detailed as number 4886 in the sale catalogue of the collection of the Belgian bibliophile and politician Charles van Hulthem in the section 'Ecole française' where it is described as 'En cahiers' and 'Six livraisons contenant ensemble vingt-quatre planches'.
The nature of the printing of the plates is also intriguing: while the engravings (and the presence of uncut sheets in this set with their original platemarks together with the artist's and engraver's signatures make it clear that these are engravings) appear to be stipple-engraved, when trimmed, i.e. with no platemark, the plates could be (and are) mistaken for lithographs.
[see number 4886 in the 'Catalogue Raisonné de la Précieuse Collection de Dessins et d'Estampes au Nombre de Près de 30,000, Formant le Cabinet de Ch. van Hulthem', Gand, 1846].
Details of the individual plates and cahiers are as follows:
Cahier 1:
1.Chêne (Oak). Engraved by Massolle. (Sheet size: 520 x 362 mm)
2. Bouleau (Birch). Engraved by 'Mlle. Lingée f[em]me Lefèvre'. (Sheet size: 518 x 360 mm).
3. Hêtre de l'intérieur de la Forêt (Beech). Engraved by Noël. (Sheet size: 545 x 382 mm).
4. Châtaignier (Sweet chestnut). No engraver credited. (Sheet size: 512 x 362 mm).
Cahier 2:
1. Châtaignier (Sweet chestnut). Engraved by Le Roy. (Sheet size: 518 x 362 mm).
2. Saule (Willow). Engraved by A. B. Lefèvre. (Sheet size: 519 x 365 mm).
3. Orme (Elm). Engraved by Le Roy. (Sheet size: 522 x 365 mm).
4. Vieux Chêne (Old Oak). Engraved by Noêl. (Sheet size: 522 x 365 mm).
Cahier 3:
1. Vieux Hêtre (Old Beech). Engraved by Monsaldy. (Sheet size: 528 x 362 mm).
2. Peuplier d'Italie (Lombardy Poplar). Engraved by 'Mlle. Lingée f[em]me Lefèvre'. (Sheet size: 531 x 366 mm).
3. Frêne (Ash). Engraved by Massol. (Sheet size: 533 x 366 mm).
4. Marronnier d'Inde (Horse Chestnut). Engraved by 'Mlle. Lingée f[em]me Lefèvre'. (Sheet size: 534 x 366 mm).
Cahier 4:
1. Cyprès (Cypress). Engraved by Monsaldy. (Sheet size: 528 x 370 mm).
2. Peuplier-Tremble (Aspen). Engraved by Gabriel. (Sheet size: 528 x 370 mm).
3. Acacia (Acacia). Engraved by Gabriel. (Sheet size: 524 x 367 mm).
4. Jeune Pin (Young Pine). Engraved by Le Roy. (Sheet size: 522 x 368 mm).
Cahier 5:
1. Saule Pleureur (Weeping Willow). Engraved by Monsaldy. (Sheet size: 528 x 368 mm).
2. Vieux Sapin (Old Fir). Engraved by Le Roy. (Sheet size: 530 x 570 mm).
3. Pin Parasol (Stone Pine). Engraved by Noël. (Sheet size: 529 x 372 mm).
4. Noyer (Walnut). Engraved by Aze. (Sheet size: 529 x 370 mm).
Cahier 6:
1. Allée de Marronnier (Avenue of Chestnut). Engraved by Monsaldy. (Sheet size: 528 x 368 mm).
2. Bouleau & Frêne (Birch & Ash). Engraved by Massol. (Sheet size: 528 x 369 mm).
3. Peuplier & Trêne [sic]. (Poplar & Ash). Engraved by Monsaldy. (Sheet size: 528 x 371 mm).
4. Arbre Mort (Dead Tree). Engraved by Monsaldy. (Sheet size: 530 x 374 mm).
These rare engravings, printed at the turn of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, present something of an enigma. Produced in an elegant format and issued in parts - as the present set attests - the engravings were intended, as indicated in the title, to serve as models for amateurs, students and young artists. Each of the plates was engraved (see below) after Defiennes or de Fiennes' original drawings by various engravers but we can find no trace of de Fiennes (or indeed Defiennes) in the standard literature: Beraldi, Delteil, Thieme-Becker and Benezit have no entries for such an artist and it seems likely that this is the artist's only work; it is also unclear from the initial 'A' whether de Fiennes is male or female.
We can trace one copy aside from the present example, that held in the Bibliothèque Nationale de France (with each plate mounted on larger sheets) but as each of the plates bears the legend 'Déposé à la Bibliothèque Nationale' this is hardly a surprise. A further copy - perhaps even this copy - is detailed as number 4886 in the sale catalogue of the collection of the Belgian bibliophile and politician Charles van Hulthem in the section 'Ecole française' where it is described as 'En cahiers' and 'Six livraisons contenant ensemble vingt-quatre planches'.
The nature of the printing of the plates is also intriguing: while the engravings (and the presence of uncut sheets in this set with their original platemarks together with the artist's and engraver's signatures make it clear that these are engravings) appear to be stipple-engraved, when trimmed, i.e. with no platemark, the plates could be (and are) mistaken for lithographs.
[see number 4886 in the 'Catalogue Raisonné de la Précieuse Collection de Dessins et d'Estampes au Nombre de Près de 30,000, Formant le Cabinet de Ch. van Hulthem', Gand, 1846].
Details of the individual plates and cahiers are as follows:
Cahier 1:
1.Chêne (Oak). Engraved by Massolle. (Sheet size: 520 x 362 mm)
2. Bouleau (Birch). Engraved by 'Mlle. Lingée f[em]me Lefèvre'. (Sheet size: 518 x 360 mm).
3. Hêtre de l'intérieur de la Forêt (Beech). Engraved by Noël. (Sheet size: 545 x 382 mm).
4. Châtaignier (Sweet chestnut). No engraver credited. (Sheet size: 512 x 362 mm).
Cahier 2:
1. Châtaignier (Sweet chestnut). Engraved by Le Roy. (Sheet size: 518 x 362 mm).
2. Saule (Willow). Engraved by A. B. Lefèvre. (Sheet size: 519 x 365 mm).
3. Orme (Elm). Engraved by Le Roy. (Sheet size: 522 x 365 mm).
4. Vieux Chêne (Old Oak). Engraved by Noêl. (Sheet size: 522 x 365 mm).
Cahier 3:
1. Vieux Hêtre (Old Beech). Engraved by Monsaldy. (Sheet size: 528 x 362 mm).
2. Peuplier d'Italie (Lombardy Poplar). Engraved by 'Mlle. Lingée f[em]me Lefèvre'. (Sheet size: 531 x 366 mm).
3. Frêne (Ash). Engraved by Massol. (Sheet size: 533 x 366 mm).
4. Marronnier d'Inde (Horse Chestnut). Engraved by 'Mlle. Lingée f[em]me Lefèvre'. (Sheet size: 534 x 366 mm).
Cahier 4:
1. Cyprès (Cypress). Engraved by Monsaldy. (Sheet size: 528 x 370 mm).
2. Peuplier-Tremble (Aspen). Engraved by Gabriel. (Sheet size: 528 x 370 mm).
3. Acacia (Acacia). Engraved by Gabriel. (Sheet size: 524 x 367 mm).
4. Jeune Pin (Young Pine). Engraved by Le Roy. (Sheet size: 522 x 368 mm).
Cahier 5:
1. Saule Pleureur (Weeping Willow). Engraved by Monsaldy. (Sheet size: 528 x 368 mm).
2. Vieux Sapin (Old Fir). Engraved by Le Roy. (Sheet size: 530 x 570 mm).
3. Pin Parasol (Stone Pine). Engraved by Noël. (Sheet size: 529 x 372 mm).
4. Noyer (Walnut). Engraved by Aze. (Sheet size: 529 x 370 mm).
Cahier 6:
1. Allée de Marronnier (Avenue of Chestnut). Engraved by Monsaldy. (Sheet size: 528 x 368 mm).
2. Bouleau & Frêne (Birch & Ash). Engraved by Massol. (Sheet size: 528 x 369 mm).
3. Peuplier & Trêne [sic]. (Poplar & Ash). Engraved by Monsaldy. (Sheet size: 528 x 371 mm).
4. Arbre Mort (Dead Tree). Engraved by Monsaldy. (Sheet size: 530 x 374 mm).
6 Cahiers. Folio. (c.585 x 425 mm). Each cahier with four engraved plates (24 in total), all by various engravers (see below) after de Fiennes on a variety of laid papers, each with printed title in French, plate number at upper left or right and cahier number at upper left or right and the legend 'Déposé à la Bibliothèque Nationale', various sheet sizes (see below). Each cahier issued loose in original uncut publisher's printed wrappers with deckle edges, each with letterpress text to front cover and manuscript cahier number in sepia ink.
#44483
