Laying the Foundation

Drypoint etching, 1920.
Image: 8 x 8″
Paper: 14 1/4 x 11 1/2″
Excellent condition.

Inventory Number: 10675
Signed in pencil by artist.
Men laying the foundation for a building.

Etcher, draughtsman, illustrator, and painter known for his architectural studies and compositions, Ian Strang was born in 1886 in London. Son of artist William Strang, he studied at the Slade School of London under Henry Tonks and Frederick Brown from 1902 to 1906, and then at the Academie Julian under J.P. Laurens (1906-1908). He traveled throughout Europe for some time, and held his first solo exhibition at the Goupil Gallery in 1914. That same year, he served in World War I in the Middlesex and Royal Berkshire Regiments until 1919, when he once more began pursuing his art career. He became a member of the Faculty for Engraving at the British School in Rome, through which he published the Students’ Book of Etching in 1938. Well known as an etcher, his early works included drypoint to convey tonality, but he used pure etching techniques in his later works in order to achieve the desired effect. He died at Wavendon, Buckinghamshire on March 23, 1952. A memorial exhibition was held at the Leicester Galleries in 1952.