Fotoreproductie van een prent naar een schilderij van een vrouw met een boek door William Boxall before 1874

This is a photomechanical reproduction of a print, after a painting by William Boxall. While we don't know exactly when it was made, we can see the imprint of industrial processes. Take a close look, and you can see that the image has been captured using a screened printing process. This hints at mass production; photomechanical techniques allowed for the wide distribution of images, democratizing access to art but also transforming it into a commodity. Notice the contrast with earlier forms of printmaking. Where artisans once painstakingly engraved each line, photography enabled a more automated reproduction. What does it mean for the status of the image, and the notion of artistic labor, when a machine mediates its creation? This reproductive method raises questions about value, authenticity, and the changing relationship between art and industry. Considering materiality and processes used here challenges traditional art history.