HARRIS SCHRANK FINE PRINTS

Emil Orlik (1870-1932), Würfler – Gambler, etching, 1897, signed in pencil lower right. Reference: Söhn 52803-6, published in the art periodical PAN Vol.3, October 1897. In good condition, with margins  (browning toward margin edges), 2 3 1/4, the sheet 3 x 4 1/4 inches. A fine impression of this rarely encountered tiny gem, printed on laid paper, with plate tone. This print was later published in Pan, Vol. 3, October 1897. Allan Wolman, in his indispensable website on Orlik (www.orlikprints.com), writes of the context of Orlik’s career at this early transitional stage: In 1896 Orlik returned to Munich to work [...]

Emil Orlik (1870-1932), Am Gänsehäufel in Wien, 1911, soft-ground etching, signed and dated in pencil lower right.  In very good condition, on firm laid paper with margins, 5 1/2 x 8, the sheet 9 3/4 x 12 1/2 inches. A fine impression of this great rarity; few impressions are known to exist. Printed on a cream colored laid paper in dark brownish/black ink. In this splendid example of Orlik’s printmaking expertise,  he may have used aquatint to achieve the solid areas of print and selected wiping of the plate to achieve shading; the burr on some of the figures suggests [...]

Emil Orlik (1870-1932), Old Arab Man, etching with platetone, c. 1912-16, signed in pencil and annotated (or dated) 16. In very good condition, printed on cream laid paper, 3 3/4 x 2 1/8, the sheet 5 3/4 x 3 7/8 inches. A fine clear impression. The invaluable Emil Orlik website (www.orlik.com) dates this print to about 1912; they note that “In 1912 he made his next important journey abroad, visiting North Africa, Ceylon, China, Korea and Japan, returning via Siberia.” Orlik demonstrates his familiarity with the old masters, especially Rembrandt, in this tiny print – he had carefully studied and [...]

Emil Orlik (1870-1932) Feluka on Nile, circa 1916, signed in pencil lower right margin.  In very good condition, with margins (remains of prior hinging margin corners verso), 4 5/8 x 8, the sheet 6 1/2 x 10 inches. A fine impression, in dark reddish brown ink, with platetone, on a cream wove paper. Emil Orlik (1870-1932, born in Prague) was a member of the Berlin and the Viennese Secessions, but although often identified as a leading and early German Expressionist, his art transcended any single movement. He first traveled to the Far East in 1900, wanting to learn close up what [...]

Emil Orlik (1870-1932), Portrait of Slevogt, etching, 1921, signed in pencil and numbered (27/100) [also signed and dated in the plate], from the presumed edition of 100. In very good condition, 3 5/8 x 3 3/4, the sheet 12 x 10 1/4 inches. A very good impression, on ivory laid paper. Max Slevogt (1866-1932), a friend of Orlik, was a leading German artist, printmaker, and illustrator. The definitive source of information on Orlik, with pictures of his prints (some for sale) and an extensive biography,  is of course the comprehensive  website produced by Allan Wolman and Anne Schneider (www.orlikprints.com).

Emil Orlik (1870-1932), Die Loge im Gaite Montparnasse (Paris), drypoint, etching and soft ground, 1911, signed and numbered in pencil lower right, for the portfolio Zuschauer und Zuhorer (Listening and Watching), in very good condition, on an orange chine colle paper, 5 x 7 1/2, the (backing) sheet 8 3/4 x 11 5/8. A fine impression. Orlik captures the intense interest of each of these nine spectators, sitting and standing in the Loge at the Gaity in Montparnasse. Orlik visited Paris often, getting to know artists including Vallotton, Toulouse-Lautrec, Pissarro and Renoir.  And of course one of his great interests was the theatre [...]

Emil Orlik (1870-1932), Mother with Smiling Child (Mutter Mit Lachelndem Kind), etching with roulette, 1896, signed and dated in pencil lower right [also signed in the plate lower right]. In very good condition, the full sheet with wide margins, 3 3/4 x 4 7/8, the sheet 5 1/4, the sheet 7 1/8 x 9 3/8 inches, archival window mat. A fine atmospheric impression of this very early, rare image. Printed on a thin ivory laid paper with deckle edges. At this point in his career Orlik was mastering printmaking, breaking away from his conservative teachers, and moving toward a more modernist approach as represented by [...]

Emil Orlik (1870-1932), Market in Grodek, etching and aquatint, 1898, signed in pencil lower right, in very good condition, trimmed just outside of the platemark and so with a small margin, 3 x 5 3/4 inches, archival mounting. A fine impression, printed in brown ink. Market in Grodek, a small and seemingly unassuming print, is in my view one of Orlik’s most intriguing and successful compositions. Grodek was a ‘schtetl’ (a community of Eastern European Orthodox Jews) near Prague. For information on the life and work of Emil Orlik I recommend visiting the Emil Orlik website created by London-based Limited Edition Graphics; this is [...]

Emil Orlik (1870-1932), Bei Enoshima, etching, 1901, signed in pencil lower right. In very good condition (slight toning); with full margins, 3 3/4 x 5 1/4, the sheet 7 1/8 x 9 3/8 inches, archival matting. A fine impression, one of Orlik’s finest images of rural Japan. This impression is on laid paper, carefully printed with dotted effects in the sky and the foreground (possibly made with the use of sulphur placed on the plate, to get a dotted, gritty effect). There is evidence of soft-ground etching in the lower left, and drypoint in the finely drawn lines in the sky. [...]