Jacob Epstein, No. 2
c. 1906
Medium
etching
Dimensions
sheet: 28.5 × 22.4 cm (11 1/4 × 8 13/16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1943.3.5101
Art Historical Context
Augustus John’s etching *Jacob Epstein, No. 2* (c. 1906) offers a compelling portrait of the young sculptor Jacob Epstein, rendered with the delicate precision characteristic of early twentieth-century printmaking. Created when both artists were active in London’s vibrant artistic circles, the work captures Epstein at the outset of his career, just before his bold modernist sculptures began to provoke public debate. Etching, the medium chosen here, allowed John to achieve fine linear detail and subtle tonal variation through the controlled use of acid on a metal plate. The modest sheet size—2...
About the Artist
Augustus John
Augustus Edwin John OM RA (1878–1961) was a Welsh painter, draughtsman, and etcher whose prodigious early gifts made him the most celebrated portraitist in Britain during the first decades of the twentieth century. Born on 4 January 1878 in Tenby, Pembrokeshire, he lost his mother Augusta Smith in childhood, a loss that left a permanent mark on his restless temperament. He and his elder sister Gwe...