Recently, I came across a set of four lithographic prints. They were all based on one artist’s work. In truth, I was only interested in one of the four. All four are images of the Antarctica which were painted by #CharlesEdwardWilson.

The three prints above are modern photographic prints.

Wilson was a doctor, ornithologist, and artist. He joined Scott on the Discovery Expedition to Antarctica from 1901-1904, later returning to Antarctica on the ill-fated Terra Nova. He created watercolours, sketches, and observations that portrayed the polar environment and expedition life. Wilson sketched with pencil, notating colours for later painting. A trick he used was to add vodka to his watercolour water to keep it from freezing. He produced studies of birds and the polar environment, which later became the basis for the book Edward Wilson’s Birds of the Antarctic.

Wilson perished alongside Scott and his comrads of the expedition.

The last print is actually a true lithograph with colour layed upon colour. A note on the back says that it should be sold to advance The Boys Scouts back in 1962 and sold for the princely sum of £10. In todays money, you would be looking between £350 to £450 for this print. A lovely and historically informative piece.