"The Lunch Hour Under Cliff Street Arch." Fine lithographic transfer of an etching by Henry Wilfrid Deville, of Cliff Street Arch of the Brooklyn Bridge. Printed on Japan-like paper, although slightly heavier. Manhattan was a favorite subject of Deville.

Dimensions: 6 1/2" x 5"; 12" x 9" overall. Minor creasing, othrwise fine.

This was from the inventory of Kennedy Galleries of New York, one of the oldest art galleries in the country. I obtained it, among others, at auction. Founded as H. Wunderlich & Company in 1874, as a seller of 'fashionable prints', the name changed to Kennedy & Company in 1912, and to Kennedy Galleries in 1952. The gallery space closed in 2005, and the print inventory has been liquidated over time. The penciled number on the lower right of the greetings page is typical of the Kennedy Galleries inventory system. Kennedy Galleries was an important patron and promoter of art printing. It is likely that Kennedy Galleries intermediated in the creation of these lithographs.

Architect and etcher Henry Wilfrid Deville was born in Nantes, France. He pursued studies in etching with Henry Winslow in New York in 1907 and, upon his return to France the following year, with Louis Auguste Lepêre. He traveled regularly between New York and France during the pre-World War I years. After serving in the French army, he returned to architecture. His etchings are predominately architectural views and cityscapes. He exhibited his work in both new York and Paris, and his work is held by numerous institutions including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, the New York Historical Society, and The National Gallery of Art, Washington, D. C. He died in France.