Supper of the Poor (Le souper chez misere) 

Alphonse Legros made "Supper of the Poor" using etching, a printmaking process that's all about line. The image starts as a polished metal plate, often copper or zinc. The artist coats it with a waxy, acid-resistant substance, then draws through this coating with a sharp needle to expose the metal. When the plate is dipped in acid, the exposed lines are eaten away, creating grooves. Ink is then forced into these lines, the surface wiped clean, and the image transferred to paper under high pressure. In "Supper of the Poor," the stark lines and cross-hatching create a somber mood, emphasizing the worn faces and meager meal of the figures. Legros uses the etching process to highlight the textures of their clothes and the rough wooden table, adding to the scene’s gritty realism. By choosing etching, Legros aligns himself with a tradition of printmaking that democratized art, making it accessible to a wider audience and speaking to the social issues of his time. He elevates what might be considered craft into a powerful commentary on labor, class, and the human condition.