Existing comment:
In the pre-photographic and pre-digital era, sketches and woodprints were the only visual means of reaching the public. These original prints of Thomas Nast's illustrations are over 150 years old. They are valuable collectibles and the result of the immensely laborious and time-consuming etching and printing process when they were printed during the Civil War. The sketches of Adalbert Volck are taken from reprints of the originals in Sketches from the Civil War in North America.
Whereas Thomas Nast is said to have been "the father of American caricature" (especially for creating the now popularized images of Santa Claus, the Democratic donkey, and the Republican elephant), Adalbert Volck was largely unknown to the public during the Civil War. He lived and worked in Baltimore, Union territory. This not only mean that he had to create his drawings/sketches in secret, but also that it was impossible for him to find anyone willing to publish his illustrations. |