Portret van Juan Pico, 55ste Minister Generaal van de franciscaner orde 1710 - 1738

Antonio Luciani made this print of Juan Pico, 55th Minister General of the Franciscan Order, sometime in the early 18th century. It’s an engraving, meaning the design was incised into a copper plate, which was then inked and pressed onto paper. Engraving like this was at the heart of the early modern information economy. Think of it as the Instagram of its day – a way of circulating images widely. The fine, precise lines give the portrait a sense of dignity, appropriate for a high-ranking religious figure. But it’s important to remember that this wasn't just a work of art; it was a piece of reproducible media. Engravers were skilled laborers, and their work underpinned the spread of knowledge and visual culture. By focusing on the material and the making, we can understand this print not just as an image of a man, but as a product of a complex social and economic system.