Gezicht op Delft 1837 - 1886

Maxime Lalanne made this print of Delft using etching, a process that’s been around for centuries. The scene is rendered with countless tiny, precise lines, each one bitten into the metal plate by acid. Think about the labor involved. Lalanne would have coated the plate with wax, then carefully scratched away the lines of his composition. After bathing the plate in acid and removing the wax, the plate is inked. The ink sits in the etched lines and is then transferred to paper. The beauty of etching lies in the crispness of line and the subtle gradations of tone that can be achieved. But it is also a distinctly modern medium, well-suited to capturing the industrializing world. Prints like this were made to be circulated, consumed, and collected, much like the commodities produced in factories. So, next time you see an etching, don’t just admire the image. Consider the processes, the social context, and the sheer amount of work that went into its creation.