Kind met gekruld haar 1683 - 1733

This small print, 'Kind met gekruld haar,' or 'Child with Curly Hair,' was made by Bernard Picart in the early 18th century using engraving. Picart incised an image into a copper plate, which was then inked and printed onto paper. Look closely at the dense network of fine lines that create the illusion of volume and light, a remarkable achievement given the inherent difficulty of the material. To produce images like this demanded incredible skill, but prints like this one were also made for a burgeoning market. Prints were relatively cheap and therefore accessible to a wide range of buyers. They circulated ideas and images on an unprecedented scale. Picart was acutely aware of this new economy. As a protestant in Catholic France, he self-published his work and eventually moved to Amsterdam for greater freedom. By attending to the material processes by which prints are created, we can better understand not only their visual qualities, but also the social and cultural significance that they carried in their time.