4 Quebec Street Scenes Etchings

Trying to figure the artist.
Also, I wonder why the etchings have different numbering? All four of them are impressed on the same paper. Maybe there were many of those street scenes and they were combined differently?

 

Looks like The Four Seasons. Maybe each was done as a separate impression and they were later combined?

 

But how can you combine them? The plates are on the same sheet.

 

Not being knowledgeable at all about these things, I *wondered* whether each separate plate was used by itself to make "individual numbered impressions" that were sold separately but then later the 4 plates were set up side-by-side so as to make the 4 impressions on one sheet version. Because they were individual plates, they could then be used in various combinations. Perhaps someone with more direct knowledge of this process would confirm or deny?

 

My guess #1 is that the plates were meant to be used together in this piece, but were also used individually, and maybe in different combinations, so the numbering was based on the current number of impressions for each plate.

My guess #2 is that the artist normally did more than one impression on a single sheet of paper and then would cut them apart, but this time decided to keep them together. Although cutting these impressions apart would leave much less paper around the image than normal, so I'd be surprised if this is what happened here.

 

I also found it interesting about the numbering of the four framed prints. I also see that three of the four framed together were in an edition of "450" while the fourth one was in an edition of "750" (that being the second from the left in the four framed together). Your enlargement of that print (only print showing the entirety of the green spire/bell tower) is the last one on the bottom right in your closeups (357/750).

 

It may looks like 750 but they are all in 450 examples.
Any suggestions on the signature?

 

No idea. A lot of similar items were sold as tourist art and still probably are. You may never know whodunnit.

 

Hi,
If they are all on the same piece of paper, I bet the "artist' or the maker marked them all differently on the mat to make people think they are numbered prints. I bet the real number ran off in the thousands.
greg