A pivotal British artist of the twentieth century, Nevinson was the most prolific printmaker associated with Vorticism. He was a friend of the Italian Futurist poet Marinetti, and like the Futurist artists, was inspired by the machine and by speed as a symbol of the dynamism of modern life. During WWI, Nevinson was an ambulance driver, a Red Cross nurse, and later an official war artist. After completing a number of war subjects, he returned to London and Paris scenes. In 1919 and again in 1920 he visited New York, which led to a small number of superb drypoints and two mezzotints of Manhattan, which rival any prints by American artists of this subject.

There is considerable confusion surrounding Nevinson’s graphic work, which has never been fully catalogued. The artist rarely titled, dated or numbered his prints, nor did he record edition sizes. His prints are quite rare, particularly the New York subjects. According to Malcolm Salamon, Nevinson created a set of ten drypoints of New York commissioned by dealer and publisher Frederic Keppel, who gave Nevinson his first New York show in 1919. But judging from the scarcity of these prints, an edition was probably never completed. The following selection includes some of Nevinson’s finest prints from the period 1917-1924, and all are in excellent condition.