Nederlandse batterij buiten Brussel, 1830 1830 - 1831

Théodore Fourmois made this print of a Dutch artillery battery outside Brussels in 1830, likely using etching and engraving on a metal plate. The image shows a scene of war, of course, but it also reveals a lot about 19th-century printmaking. The fineness of the lines indicates the skill required to incise the image, and the scale of the edition reflects the growing industrialization of image production. The work’s material influences its appearance; the precise lines, the tonal gradations, and the overall clarity are all products of Fourmois’s technique. He would have used specialized tools to create this image, relying on traditions of draftsmanship and design. Prints like this were instrumental in shaping public opinion. By translating an event into a portable image, Fourmois’s print makes history available for consumption. It reminds us that even seemingly straightforward images are made, not born, and that their meanings are always tied to social and political conditions.