Joop Vegter - Beautiful small mezzotint "Peach and kiwis" - small edition - pencil signed - Sold

• Initially Joop Vegter taught drawing and graphics at the Hogeschool voor de Kunsten in Utrecht, where he set up the graphics department. From 1987 he devoted himself full-time to his graphic work. In the beginning as an etcher, later mainly to the complicated and little used mezzotint technique, also called black art. Joop Vegter reconstructed this 17th century graphic technique, among other things by talking to old printers. He wrote a book about it.

In mezzotint, the entire copper plate is first roughened with a so-called cradle iron, an instrument with a fan-shaped, serrated head that leaves rows of holes and burrs on the copper plate. The ink adheres to the more or less rough surface. The plate is completely covered with ink, hence the name black art. Then, for example, the drawing is transferred to the plate with red chalk. In order to apply an image, some parts of the roughened plate are smoothed with a scraper (polishing steel). In those places, the ink no longer adheres evenly and the light areas are therefore created in the print. By polishing more or less, it is possible to achieve different grey tones, or half tones, hence the name mezzo (half) tint. This depends on the skill of the engraver/artist. The technique allows for smooth transitions between the different grey tones. This gives the prints a velvety impression.
Joop Vegter was born in 1931, died in 2017. He specialized in: Mezzotint, watercolors. Favorite theme: still life. Education: Institute for Applied Arts Education in Amsterdam; State Institute for the Training of Drawing Teachers. Teacher at the Academy for Visual Arts in Amersfoort. Member of The Hague Etching Club; Amersfoort Artists' Society De Ploegh.