Landschap met figuren bij brug 1613 - 1695

Nicolas Perelle made this print of a landscape with figures by a bridge sometime in the latter half of the 17th century. It’s a great example of etching, a printmaking technique that democratized image production. To make this, Perelle would have coated a copper plate with a waxy, acid-resistant ground. Then, using a sharp needle, he scratched away the ground to expose the metal. After this, he submerged the plate in acid, which bit into the exposed lines, creating grooves. The deeper the bite, the more ink it would hold. Finally, he’d apply ink to the plate, wipe the surface clean, and press it onto paper, transferring the image. The resulting print has a delicate, linear quality. The etched lines, with their slight variations in thickness and depth, give the image a sense of atmosphere and texture. This was a very reproducible process, and cheap compared to other forms of image making. So next time you are looking at a print, think about all the labor that was involved to get it into your hands.