Bankroet van een schoenlapper 1775

Daniel Nikolaus Chodowiecki made this etching, *Bankruptcy of a Shoemaker*, using a technique that could disseminate imagery widely. The etching method involves using acid to cut lines into a metal plate, which is then inked and printed. It’s an indirect process, mediated by materials. Notice the crisp fineness of the lines achieved with a metal tool, allowing Chodowiecki to render this scene with extraordinary detail. Consider how this technique parallels the shoemaker’s own tools. The print shows us a shoemaker's world turned upside down, tools thrown out of the window and the tradesman hiding from debt collectors. The image becomes a wry comment on economic instability. The etching process itself, capable of producing many impressions, speaks to the rise of consumer culture, a development that would also contribute to the demise of handwork and the rise of mass-produced goods. Chodowiecki’s choice of etching connects the shoemaker's personal crisis to broader social and economic shifts, blurring the lines between art, craft, and the everyday realities of labor and commerce.