Harbor at night, an original 1914 etching by Austrian/German Expressionist artist, Wilhelm Thöny (1888-1949). It is hand signed and dated in pencil by the artist as well as presentation inscribed to Thea Herrmann who later became the artist's second wife. The date coincides with Thony's wartime service so this may well be a view of nightime artillery shelling. 

The plate measures 5 1/4 x 4 1/8 inches, sheet size is approx. 16 x 11 1/4 inches with a deckel edge to bottom and left side.  It is printed on cream colored laid paper  and it is in excellent condition, does not seem to have ever been framed or matted.

Wilhelm Thöny (1888-1949) was an assertive Austrian born German Expressionist. He studied art in Munich, Germany and when Thöny finished his studies he first worked as a graphic designer and illustrator for several publishers. He began showing in exhibitions in 1910 and co-foundered the New Secession in Munich. Alfred Kubin, Franz Marc, and Albert Weißgerber were among his acquaintances.

On his return to Austria, rebelling against traditional academic painting, he led several "Secessions" including his hometown Graz, Austria. The outbreak of World War I interfered with Thöny’s career, he served as a war artist on the Italian front and then returned to Graz. In 1915 he married an American, Fanny Hilma Walborg-White.

In 1931, he left Austria for Switzerland, and then via Paris, migrated to the United States where from about 1938, he lived in New York City, first staying with his father-in-law, artist Frank Herrman. In Europe, William Thony was a book illustrator whose commissions included novels by Balzac, Dostoevski, and Edgar Allen Poe. Exhibition venues included the 1937 World's Fair in Paris, the Whitney Museum in 1944, Carnegie Institute from 1943 to 1947, and Corcoran Gallery biennials 1945 and 1947. He died in New York in 1949