About The Artist:
Louis Le Breton
Louis Le Breton (1818 Douarnenez – 1866) was a French painter who specialised in marine paintings. Le Breton studied medicine and took part in Dumont d'Urville's second voyage aboard the Astrolabe. After the official illustrator of the expedition died, Le Breton replaced him. From 1847 he devoted himself exclusively to depicting marine subjects for the French Navy. Louis le Breton served in the navy as a surgeon. He travelled with Dumont...
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About The Medium:
Etching
The printing process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal. In traditional pure etching, a metal (usually copper, zinc or steel) plate is covered with a waxy ground which is resistant to acid. The artist then scratches off the ground with a pointed etching needle where they want a line to appear in the finished piece, exposing the bare metal. The plate is then put through a high-pressure printing press together with a sheet of paper (often moistened to soften it). The paper picks up the ink from the etched lines, making a print.