Etrenne pour le Jour de 1An 1820- Preservatif certain contre la Piqure c. early 19th century

This hand-colored etching entitled 'Etrenne pour le Jour de l'An 1820- Preservatif certain contre la Piqure' was created in 1820 by an anonymous artist. The print is divided into two distinct scenes, each employing a different spatial logic to convey its message. On the left, we see a boudoir scene in which women are trying on fashionable faux posterior. The repetition of the 'false bottoms' creates a visual rhythm, which is then juxtaposed to the right with a workshop where men are forging the metal frames of the same fashion. The shift in setting brings together the world of feminine adornment with male labor. The composition of the print can be read as a commentary on the production of desire and artifice in early 19th-century culture. The print’s formal construction embodies a dialogue between illusion and reality, as well as gendered labor. It is through these structured oppositions that the artist explores the cultural meanings embedded within fashion and its consumption. The interplay of these elements invites viewers to consider how meaning is produced and circulated within a specific cultural and historical context.