What is the great Exhibition?
The Great Exhibition began in 1851 and was the first International exhibition of manufactured products, organised by Henry Cole and Prince Albert. It played an enormous part in the development of many aspects of society including art and design education, international trade relations, and also tourism.
The exhibition was held in a purpose-built Crystal Palace in Hyde Park. In order to expose British design to foreign competition they made it an International one which as not universally welcomed by those who wanted to keep out foreign competition and those who objected to building in Hyde Park. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert gave authorisation that the Exhibition could go ahead and it was believed to have been attended by over six million people.
Sheffield Hardware at the Great Exhibition
At the Exhibition Sheffield had their own stand which enabled them to present and show off it's excellence in metalworks. The main emphasis of the exhibition was on the industrial aspects of British Design, with fine arts included to inspire designers and improve their taste.
What is lithography?
Lithography originates from the Greek meaning 'writing with stone'. It is a popular surface printing technique invented by German Alois Senefelder in 1798, based on the chemical repulsion of oil and water. It was a way for him to print text, in particular his own plays. The first collection of Lithographs was published in London in 1803 but the process was kept a top secret until 1818. It quickly became popular with many artists as a means of reproduction by drawing a picture on to a flat stone surface with a greasy litho crayon or a greasy black ink, which was then pressed to reproduce lots of copies of paper. The process was continuously improved by Senefelder during his lifetime which he achieved awards and medals for.
Henry fuseli
Goya
These are examples of lithographs that have been created by artists Benjamin West, Henry Fuseli, Goya and Theodore Gericault during
1801 - 1803.
Gericault
By 1804 it became possible to give both colour and tone to a lithograph.
