The Four Elements 1588

Jacob Matham made this engraving, *The Four Elements*, around the turn of the 17th century. It’s created from a copper plate, a relatively inexpensive material that was essential to the development of print culture in early modern Europe. The technique involves cutting lines into the plate’s surface, inking it, and then transferring that impression onto paper. Look closely, and you can see the crisp, precise lines that define the figures and their dramatic poses. The image depicts earth, air, fire, and water, and we can imagine the intense, focused labour required to translate these fundamental forces into graphic form. Matham was working at a time when printmaking was becoming increasingly important for disseminating knowledge, artistic ideas, and political messaging. It was a powerful technology in a rapidly changing world. Next time you see an early print like this, consider how it contributed to the circulation of images and ideas that shaped society itself, challenging any rigid boundary between art and craft.