Print Shops - Past and Present
by Grace Elliot In Georgian times, then as now, people were fascinated by visual images; of course, in those days there was no television or cinema and so art was the draw. However only those with spare income could afford the entry fee into art exhibitions, and indeed, the free, annual Royal Academy exhibition was so popular that it was mobbed by unruly crowds and eventually an entry fee was levied to keep the poorest out. But in the 18th century with the rise of the print shop, their window displays became the new galleries, drawing crowds to gaze on the latest works of art. A Gillray cartoon depicting a crowd outside a print shop in St James's Street. Prior to 1740 most prints were imported from France and in 1744 when Hogarth engravings made for 'Marriage a la Mode' he called up two Frenchmen. Indeed, during the first half of the 18th century printsellers sold mainly French wares, the British equivalent being cheap copies and poor quality. It took printer ...