Gerhard Giese Salicath 1847

This is a portrait of Gerhard Giese Salicath made by Just Hansen. Though undated, it’s a lithograph, a printmaking process perfected in the 19th century. The technique relies on the property that oil and water don't mix, drawing an image on a flat stone or metal plate with a greasy medium such as a crayon. The stone is then treated with a chemical that fixes the image, allowing it to repel water and accept ink. The lithographic method enabled artists to produce multiple copies of an image, democratizing art and illustration by making images more accessible to a wider audience. It’s a technique born out of the Industrial Revolution, and tied to wider social issues of labor, politics, and consumption. The fine lines and shading in this portrait show the high level of skill required to create a lithograph, and how these techniques have infused the artwork with social or cultural significance. Appreciating the craft involved challenges our traditional distinctions between fine art and the more everyday world of print.