Edwin Davis French
Encyclopedia
Edwin Davis French was a highly esteemed bookplate
engraver, producing at least 330 beginning in 1893.
Born in North Attleboro, Massachusetts
, his artistic career had begun in 1869 with silver
engraving for the Whiting Manufacturing Company. Later, he became a founding member and trustee of the American Fine Arts Society
. Two men who influenced French's work were Albrecht Dürer
and Charles W. Sherborn. Many of his patrons belonged to the Grolier Club
.
He was interested in constructed language
s and was active in the Volapük
movement http://catnyp.nypl.org/record=b3839685, and also learned Esperanto
.
French had suffered from poor health most of his life, having left Brown University
in his sophomore year because of it, and eventually succumbed to tuberculosis
.
Bookplate
A bookplate, also known as ex-librīs [Latin, "from the books of..."], is usually a small print or decorative label pasted into a book, often on the inside front cover, to indicate its owner...
engraver, producing at least 330 beginning in 1893.
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, his artistic career had begun in 1869 with silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
engraving for the Whiting Manufacturing Company. Later, he became a founding member and trustee of the American Fine Arts Society
American Fine Arts Society
The American Fine Arts Society is located in New York, New York. The building was built in 1891 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 6, 1980. The American Fine Arts Society was founded by Howard Russell Butler.-See also:...
. Two men who influenced French's work were Albrecht Dürer
Albrecht Dürer
Albrecht Dürer was a German painter, printmaker, engraver, mathematician, and theorist from Nuremberg. His prints established his reputation across Europe when he was still in his twenties, and he has been conventionally regarded as the greatest artist of the Northern Renaissance ever since...
and Charles W. Sherborn. Many of his patrons belonged to the Grolier Club
Grolier Club
The Grolier Club is a private club and society of bibliophiles in New York City. Founded in January 1884, it is the oldest existing bibliophilic club in North America. The club is named after Jean Grolier de Servières, Viscount d'Aguisy, Treasurer General of France, whose library was famous; his...
.
He was interested in constructed language
Constructed language
A planned or constructed language—known colloquially as a conlang—is a language whose phonology, grammar, and/or vocabulary has been consciously devised by an individual or group, instead of having evolved naturally...
s and was active in the Volapük
Volapük
Volapük is a constructed language, created in 1879–1880 by Johann Martin Schleyer, a Roman Catholic priest in Baden, Germany. Schleyer felt that God had told him in a dream to create an international language. Volapük conventions took place in 1884 , 1887 and 1889 . The first two conventions used...
movement http://catnyp.nypl.org/record=b3839685, and also learned Esperanto
Esperanto
is the most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Its name derives from Doktoro Esperanto , the pseudonym under which L. L. Zamenhof published the first book detailing Esperanto, the Unua Libro, in 1887...
.
French had suffered from poor health most of his life, having left Brown University
Brown University
Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
in his sophomore year because of it, and eventually succumbed to tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
.
External links
- University of Rochester Library Bulletin Vol. II #2, February 1947, by Mary E. Oemisch
- Journal of Library History, vol. 20 #2, Spring 1985, pp. 196-9, by Robert Nikirk
- http://www.archive.org/stream/bookplatesoftoda00stoniala/bookplatesoftoda00stoniala_djvu.txt Contemporary book citing French and his prominent clients, amongst other bookplate engravers of the era.