Gezicht op Neurenberg (blad 1) 1666

Dirk Eversen Lons made this print of Nuremberg in 1666, using etching and engraving. These printmaking techniques demanded patience and precision, a slow and steady hand, to create a mirror image on a metal plate that, when inked and pressed, would reveal the scene. The image is all line, achieved through the controlled removal of metal. Think of the relationship between labor and capital: the etcher would have worked for a publisher, who then sold the image to consumers, who wanted a piece of a place. Look closely and you can make out the distinct textures created through etching and engraving. The smooth sky, the rough buildings, the rhythmic lines of the fields. There’s so much information conveyed here, all through the careful manipulation of a metal plate. It’s a reminder that every artwork is the product of material transformation, with human labor at its heart. Even something as seemingly simple as a print offers insight into the wider world of production and consumption.