Lawrence Josset

1910 – 1995

Click on a picture for more details

[Farm scene, Oast Houses, Star & Moon]

Original line and stipple engraving.

Particularly fine signed proof impression printed on firm wove paper and with pronounced platemark.

£225

[Barn Interior with Donkeys & Star]

Original line and stipple engraving.

Particularly fine signed proof impression printed on firm wove paper and with pronounced platemark.

£185

[Horse and Hound]

Original line and stipple engraving.

Beautiful signed proof impression printed on firm wove paper and with pronounced platemark.

£250

[Outside the Farmhouse]

Original line and stipple engraving.

Particularly fine signed proof impression printed on firm wove paper and with pronounced platemark.
This beautifully wrought engraving is a self portrait of the artist, Lawrence Josset and his wife at their farm, surrounded by the animals they care for.

£240

[The Shepherd and his Dog]

Original line and stipple engraving.

Excellent signed proof impression printed on firm wove paper and with pronounced platemark.

£245

[Starlit Night, Chislehurst Parish Church]

Original aquatint with line and stipple engraving.

Unique proof impression printed with whiting to form a halo around the principal star.
Beautiful signed proof impression printed on firm wove paper with pronounced platemark.

£220

[Nativity scene, the Haybarn]

Original line and stipple engraving.

Particularly fine signed proof impression printed on firm wove paper and with pronounced platemark.

SOLD

[The Virgin Mary - Nativity]

Original line and stipple engraving.

Very fine signed proof impression.
This finely wrought engraving is a direct reflection of the work of Lawrence Josset’s teacher at the Royal College of Art, Robert Sargent Austin, and could be described as a rustic version of the latter’s Young Mother of 1936.

SOLD

[The Adoration of the Shepherds]

Original line and stipple engraving.

Very fine signed proof impression.
This finely wrought engraving reflects both the work of Lawrence Josset’s teacher at the Royal College of Art, Robert Sargent Austin and the strangely chaotic imagery of David Jones (1895-1974) whose printed works would have been familiar to Josset through private press books of the time.

SOLD

[Shepherd and his Flock]

Original line and stipple engraving.

Very fine signed proof impression.
This elaborate engraving reflects the style of both Lawrence Josset’s teacher at the Royal College of Art, Robert Sargent Austin, and the engraved work of Stanley Anderson.

SOLD

[A Traveller with his Dog]

Original line and stipple engraving with mezzotint.

Unique proof impression printed in two tones of ink, the fire having been printed in warm reddish/brown ink in contrast to the black ink of the rest of the image. Excellent signed proof impression of this unusual line and stipple engraving to which the artist has added mezzotint shading to produce a nocturnal effect.

SOLD

[Starlit Night at the Farm]

Original line engraving over a mezzotint ground.

Beautiful impression of this atmospheric line engraving over a mezzotint ground, designed to create a nocturnal effect.

SOLD

[Winter Vignette]

Original line and stipple engraving.

A particularly fine signed proof impression printed on firm wove paper and with pronounced platemark.

SOLD

[Early Spring, Snowdrops]

Original line and stipple engraving.

A very fine signed proof impression of this meticulously handled engraving printed on firm wove paper and with pronounced platemark.

SOLD

[Woodland Ride]

Original line and stipple engraving.

A particularly fine signed proof impression printed on firm wove paper and with pronounced platemark.
This intricate engraving shows an intimate knowledge of the woodland etchings of John Crome (1768-1821) and reflects elements of the early work of Robin Tanner, such as his Christmas card for 1930.

SOLD

[In Woodland near the Farm]

Original line and stipple engraving.

Very fine proof impression printed from an oval plate on a large sheet of firm wove paper, folded to form a Christmas and New Year card; extensively inscribed by the artist in ink.

SOLD

Lawrence Josset, like William Blake, was a professional engraver by trade who engraved the designs of other artists, mostly in the demanding medium of mezzotint. However, like his famous predecessor, he created a small body of printed works of his own designs, made purely for personal satisfaction, through which he expressed his own artistic intent. These exquisite engravings reflect the teaching of Robert Sargent Austin but show overtones of Stanley Anderson’s engravings and follow the tradition of English pastoral art which stretched from William Blake and Samuel Palmer to Paul Drury and Robin Tanner. These carefully observed pastoral scenes, often imbued with spiritual overtones, display a precision and patience which is characteristic of Lawrence Josset’s printed works. The majority of these engravings were never released in any formal editions, having been made without commercial intent, purely for enjoyment and as gifts for friends, sometimes being used as greetings cards. All are now rare, having been produced in very small numbers, their circulation limited exclusively to Lawrence Josset’s closest friends.

Josset studied at Bromley School of Art and subsequently in the School of Engraving at the Royal College of Art, where he was taught by Robert Sargent Austin and Malcolm Osborne. He also worked for a year at Waterlow’s, the banknote engravers. After a brief spell of teaching, he embarked on what was to be a freelance career spanning more than 60 years. A quiet and unassuming man, Lawrence Josset was hopelessly un-commercial in nature and came to rely upon his habitual printer, Alfred Pomeroy, head of the London plate printing firm Thomas Ross & Son, to negotiate on his behalf. Josset’s most celebrated work is his mezzotint engraving of Pietro Annigoni’s portrait painting of the Queen, published in 1957 and hand-printed in colour by Thomas Ross & Son. During the Second World War Josset worked in the Army Camouflage Unit at Farnham Castle. Subsequently, he settled in the Kent village of Detling where he continued his work as an engraver until his sight began to fail a couple of years before his death. [more]