596327

[3104.ftw]

[Brøderbund WFT Vol. 22, Ed. 1, Tree #3104, Date of Import: Dec 9, 1998]

1889-1954. In addition to being an artist, don Swann also contributed to
civilization as a scientist and inventer. While he may have received more
publicity as being the first aviator to take off from, and land on water in
1911, he probably took greater pleasure in applying his knowledge of science to
art, specifically to the art of etching. Three of his contributions were:
1. Aluminum etching plates, electrically plated with a coat of aluminum which
enabled the artist to make a preliminary pencil drawing directly on the
plate
2. A new color process in which a gelatinous color allowed the artist to make
multiple prints without having to recolor the plates for each print.
3. An electrolitic process in which a photographic negative was exposed to a
scanning eye which in turn activated an etching stylus over a metal plate
and reproduced an almost exact likeness.
When Don Swann died in 1954, the "Baltimore Sun" reported in an editorial,
"Maryland has lost not only one of its finest artists, but one of its finest
gentlemen."