LITHOGRAPHY. – From the Greek λίθος (“stone”) and γραφία (“writing”). It generically indicates any engraving (writing, drawing, figure, etc.) made on stone prepared for this purpose; it also indicates the process by which, through chemical or mechanical action, the engraving can be reproduced in multiple copies on paper or other materials, and finally the particular field of the graphic arts concerned with printing these engravings.
The artistic execution of lithographic engraving differs from all others in that it is obtained without chemical or mechanical means, by means of a special pencil, called “lithographic,” composed of greasy substances. The beginnings of this art form, characteristic of the early nineteenth century, date back to 1796 through the work of Aloys Senefelder (1771–1834), who is regarded as its true inventor, after the sporadic and uncertain attempts of Abbé Simone Schmidt. Lithography experienced its golden age in the first half of the nineteenth century, and accomplished artists devoted themselves to it, particularly in Austria and Germany; among them should be mentioned Francesco Hanffstångl, Francesco Krüger, Osvaldo Achenbach, Adolfo Menzel, and many others.
In Italy, lithography, as a graphic industry, was introduced by two men from Trentino: Giuseppe de Werz de Sprengenstein (c. 1764–1827), who began his activity in Milan in 1807, continuing until 1813, and Giovanni Dall’Armi (d. 1829) in Rome, from 1805 until his death. Among the Italian artists who devoted themselves to lithography, one may recall Bartolomeo Pinelli (1787–1835), Francesco Hayez (1791–1882), and, later, Casimiro Teja (1830–97), particularly in the genre of caricature.
Lithography engaged the artists of the period extensively and was initially expressed through reproductions of paintings; it then gradually became more original, producing portraits, landscapes, views, and caricatures, and giving rise to graphic establishments and publishing houses specializing in II. It also played a role, though not a predominant one, in book illustration, particularly in France, where it benefited from the art of great lithographers such as Honoré Daumier and Paul Gavarni. In Italy, the use of lithography for book illustration had only limited applications and was employed above all in works of a popular and educational character; it achieved greater recognition instead as an autonomous art, especially for portraits.
The historical cycle of lithography did not extend beyond the half-century spanning the first and second fifty-year periods of the nineteenth century. It then declined rapidly, partly because this particular art form did not greatly interest private collectors. Today, after a long period of complete decline, lithography has shown promising signs of revival, with an original production of considerable artistic importance, also because it has been entrusted to new and more rapid technical procedures (