Man of Sorrows

Date 1940
Technique Aquatint, Etching
Price $295.00
Exhibitor Stone and Press Gallery
Contact the Exhibitor 504-251-3124
ann@stoneandpressgallery.com
Buy From / See At This Exhibitor's Site

aquatint, etching

1940

7 x 5

signed in pencil


The crucified Jesus Christ is shown in profile wearing a crown of thorns. Jules Andre Smith created this dramatic etching of Christ in the mid 20th century in a small edition. It is pencil signed.

J. André Smith (1880 - 1959) was born in Hong Kong, the son of a sea captain who died at sea. The family moved to Hamburg, then Boston, before settling in New York in 1893. He graduated in architecture from Cornell University but preferred the painting and etching he pursued in his spare time. By 1911 he had embarked on a new career, attaining considerable note for his etchings. His rapid, accurate work made him by far the most prolific of the official WWI artists. Unlike the other official artists, Smith actually received officer’s training and served with a camouflage unit before joining the war art program. As the senior officer in the group, he was its commander and the first to arrive in France, on 15 March 1918. After the war Smith published "In France with the American Expeditionary Forces", which included many of his wartime artworks. Based on the success of the book, he built a career as a freelance illustrator and painter. From March of 1918 until armistice, Andre Smith produced a prolific amount of artwork, documenting what he saw as “War, the business man, instead of War, the warrior.” His illustrations depict the backdrop of war, alternately evoking the tranquility of the countryside, and the stark destruction of the trenches. He was discharged in April 1919. In 1938 he opened a studio and art school in Maitland, Florida, still operating today as the Maitland Art Center.