Even if I didn’t like the print, I’d be tempted to include one with this title. This is the first time this artist’s work will be seen on this blog. Jean Michel Mathieux-Marie (such a quintessentially French name) was born in 1947, and initially trained as an architect at the École Nationale Supérieure Des Beaux-Arts [National School of Fine Arts, reputed to be the best art school in France. As an aside, the Beaux-Arts (as it is called) was formed by the merger in 1793 of the Royal Academy of Architecture (founded 1671) and the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture (founded 1648).] Within two years of graduating, he started learning drypoint engraving, which remains his preferred technique. Typical drypoint engraving (e.g. Martin Lewis) is done with a metal stylus on a soft copper plate. (Nowadays, apparently dental tools are among the more popular implements used.) Mathieux-Marie uses a diamond-tipped tool to engrave on a hard steel plate, which is unusual. It’s tough to find information on less well known contemporary artists like this, so this is all I know.
You may remember that drypoint is essentially a form of engraving using a fine needle or stylus, as opposed to traditional engraving, done with a broader gouge-like tool called a burin. Drypoint is much closer to drawing, which makes it especially attractive to artists who want to dabble in printmaking, and haven’t devoted considerable time to learning to use the burin.
I love this picture because of the angle from which the bridge is portrayed. Most pictures we’ve seen have been views along the bridge from on it. A couple have been side views. This is the only I’ve seen so far from below on the side. It has all of the texture of the Wengenroth prints we’ve looked at, plus the bottom surface of the bridge deck. In addition, we get to see the lower portion of the main towers. And don’t forget the texture of the clouds and the sky.
Le pont du Brooklyn (Drypoint, 2005)
