Putti bij twee cirkels 1690

This print, "Putti bij twee cirkels," was made by an anonymous artist, and is now held in the Rijksmuseum. It’s an engraving, meaning that the design was incised into a metal plate, which was then inked and pressed onto paper. Consider the labor involved in making this image. Each line, each tiny dot that gives tone and texture, had to be cut by hand, and because printmaking is an indirect medium, the image appears in reverse from the metal matrix. It's a highly skilled practice, which requires the maker to visualize how the final printed image will look. The image is highly formalized, with a symmetry that borders on the uncanny. On either side, allegorical figures frolic around concentric circles. The message is unclear to us now, but the very meticulousness of the printmaking process lends the image a sense of authority. The unknown artist probably worked to commission; their labor was entirely in service of the patron's desires. And the resulting print could, in turn, be reproduced and disseminated to an audience, extending that patron’s influence.