Portret van paus Leo X 1818

This is Moritz Steinla’s portrait of Pope Leo X, made with engraving. Note the extraordinary labor involved in this reproductive medium. The image is constructed out of thousands of tiny cuts into a metal plate, which would then have been inked and used to print multiple impressions. Every line you see here was made by hand, demanding tremendous skill. Engraving like this was at the heart of the print industry, the means by which images were disseminated far and wide. Consider the social implications: while only a select few could commission an oil painting, a relatively inexpensive engraving made images accessible to a much wider audience, creating a shared visual culture. The artistry is undeniable, yet this painstaking process also points to the immense amount of work involved in the production process. Thinking about materials and making helps us appreciate not only the skill of the artist, but also the broader context in which the image was created and consumed.