François Vivares was a French printmaker who worked in London and became known for his detailed landscape engravings. He produced many reproductions of paintings by famous artists and played an important role in the spread of landscape art in the 18th century.
One of his well-known series are works by Rembrandt van Rijn, including the prints with catalog numbers Bartsch 129, 133, 163, 164, 173 and 190. These etchings were done in mirror image because the etching process automatically inverted Rembrandt’s original composition when transferring it to the plate. Vivares was highly regarded in his time for the careful and refined way he translated Rembrandt’s works into engraving. His reproductions were praised for their ability to retain the atmosphere and details of the original, making them popular with collectors and art lovers.
- Image: an etching of beggar man and beggar woman conversing (Bartsch 164) after Rembrandt van Rijn
- year: ca. 1750
- quality: excellent
- signed: printed in plate
- frame size: 9.7 x 7 cm | 3.8 x 2.8 in (h x w)
