Old Bricklayer 1737

"Old Bricklayer" is an etching by French artist Anne Claude Philippe Caylus, created in 1737. This print, housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, depicts an elderly man, likely a bricklayer, in a three-quarter profile. The subject's worn clothing and the simple, yet detailed, depiction of the bricklayer's tools suggests a focus on portraying the working class. The print's realism captures the aging and weathered features of its subject, demonstrating Caylus's skill in rendering human anatomy and capturing individual character.