Houthakker zittend op een boomstam 1823 - 1873

This image of a woodcutter resting on a log was made by Célestin Nanteuil, who was born in Rome, though he spent his career in France. It is a lithograph, meaning that it was drawn on a flat stone and printed. The technique is perfectly suited to the task, because it captures the rough texture of bark and roughly hewn wood. The anonymous figure is palpably exhausted, paused between swings of his axe. The scene is one of labor, of course, but we might also consider it as one of transformation, of the standing tree being reduced to a pile of logs, a transformation made possible by the woodcutter’s toil. Lithography, though a relatively inexpensive technique, was often used for more elevated subjects. In this case, however, Nanteuil is using it to ennoble the working man. The dignity of labor is made apparent through the stark tones and contrasts of this lithograph, suggesting that the skill and toil that shaped these forms are worthy of our respect.