A Forge c. late 18th century

Antonio Zucchi’s watercolor, *A Forge*, portrays laborers engaged in metalworking, likely created sometime in the second half of the 18th century. Zucchi used watercolors and washes, a common choice for preliminary studies. The image is a window into the pre-industrial labor of a forge. The earthy tones used give a sense of the sweat, toil, and heat involved in this work. The material of metal is transformed by these artisans through repetitive physical actions. We see the worker pumping the bellows to increase the fire's intensity, while others hammer the red-hot metal into shape. The artist captures the essence of their labor, but also elevates it, framing the workers within classical architecture. Zucchi asks us to consider the immense effort involved in shaping metal. Recognizing this effort helps us understand how deeply labor is embedded in every object. By understanding the processes involved in creating metal objects, we can question the boundaries between art and craft and appreciate how they are woven into our daily lives.