Unattributed "Children Blowing Bubbles. Donato Barcaglia, Milan, Italy”

Unattributed.  “Children Blowing Bubbles. Donato Barcaglia, Milan, Italy.”  From Treasures of Art, Industry and Manufacture Represented in the American Centennial Exhibition at Philadelphia 1876. 

Buffalo: Clay, Cosack & Co., 1876. 13 1/2 x 9 ½ (image). Chromolithograph.  Very good condition.

A sprint from a superb series depicting artifacts of art and industry that were displayed in various buildings at the great Centennial Exposition in Fairmount Park, Philadelphia.  This world’s fair was an occasion of great pride for the people of the United States, and it gave a terrific impetus to American manufacturing and art.  As masterpieces from all over the world were displayed at the exhibition halls, Americans had a wonderful opportunity to examine them at first hand.  This series of prints preserved images through chromolithography which was the most advanced form of pictorial representation at the time.  The colors are vivid and the details are clear, and they give us insights into the fine points of what was appreciated by hundreds of thousands of visitors to the Exhibition.