Photography book review: Printmaking in Paris, By Fleur Roos Rosa de Carvalho and Marije Vellekoop

In the years between 1890 and 1905, Paris witnessed a revolution in printmaking. Before this time, prints had primarily served reproductive or political ends, but, as the century came to a close, artistic quality became paramount, and printmaking blossomed into an autonomous art form.

This book looks at the circumstances in which this terrific new enthusiasm for prints unfolded; the principal players in its development; and the various printmaking techniques being used. Most modern French artists experimented with lithographs, etchings, or woodcuts. Colourful prints were seen and admired all over Paris in the form of theatre programmes, sheet music, magazines, books and street posters. Featuring highlights from the Van Gogh Museum, this volume shows how the most influential artists of the day turned their hands to making beautiful "impressions" – prints that were works of art in themselves.