Twee vrouwen en kind met pop in een interieur 1732 - 1780

This print was made in the 1700s by Pierre Etienne Moitte, and it’s all about line. Look closely, and you can see how a network of tiny engraved marks builds up the image. Light and shadow are suggested by areas of greater or lesser density, requiring absolute mastery of the burin – the engraving tool. This image speaks volumes about labor, both its presence and its absence. First, there is Moitte's own effort, creating a mirror image of an existing painting. But more subtly, the picture shows women whose work is largely invisible. They manage a household, raise children, and, perhaps, create luxury goods to sell. Prints like this one were part of a system of mechanical reproduction, taking original paintings and circulating them among a much wider audience. This commodification of art, and of lived experience, is something that has only accelerated in the centuries since.