Copley was a prolific painter and printmaker. Born in Manchester, he studied at the local art school and later at the Royal Academy Schools in London. He took up lithography and was a founder member of the Senefelder Club, formed to promote lithography as a fine art medium. He married the artist Ethel Gabain, who was one of the few women of her generation to be able to make a living as a lithographer (she also made a niche for herself as a portraitist of women), and together they travelled extensively in Italy, which inspired much of their finest work. This portrait is of Ethel Gabain at the age of 31, on the eve of the First World War. Gabain was commissioned to paint a series of works during the war, notably on the Women’s Voluntary Service, and on the theme of evacuation. Copley was awarded a prize at the First International Exhibition of Lithography and Wood Engraving at the Art Institute of Chicago in 1929/30

Further reading:
Kenneth Guichard, British Etchers 1850-1940, Robin Garton, London, 1977
John Copley 1875-1950, Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, 1990

Glossary

  • Engraving

    An intaglio process whereby lines are cut into a metal or wood plate using an engraving tool (a burin), which is pushed in front of the hand to achieve a sharp controlled incision capable of great delicacy. This technique requires a great deal of control and is not suited to spontaneous mark-making.

  • Lithography

    Lithography means, literally, stone drawing. In addition to fine grain lithographic stones, metal plates can also be used for lithography. The method relies on the fact that grease repels water. An image is drawn in a greasy medium onto the stone or plate, which is then dampened with water. Greasy printing ink rolled onto that surface will adhere to the design but be repelled by the damp area. The inked image is transferred to the paper via a press. For large editions, the grease is chemically fixed to the stone, and gum arabic, which repels any further grease marks but does not repel water, is applied to the rest of the surface. For colour lithography the artist uses a separate stone or plate for each colour required.

  • Medium

    Refers to either the material used to create a work of art, craft or design, i.e. oil, bronze, earthenware, silk; or the technique employed i.e. collage, etching, carving. In painting the medium refers to the binder for the pigment, e.g. oil, egg, acrylic dispersion. The plural form is media.