Man and Woman Holding Hands 1516 - 1517

Agostino Veneziano made this engraving of a man and woman holding hands sometime in the early 16th century. The seemingly simple image is made by cutting lines into a copper plate, applying ink, and then pressing the plate onto paper. The bold lines, densely packed hatching, and controlled burr all influence the final image. It speaks to the artist's refined technical ability, and the amount of labor involved in the production process. The act of engraving transforms metal into a matrix for reproducible images, connecting the work to the rise of print culture. The relatively small size of the print allowed for wider distribution and consumption. Here we can see how printmaking democratized art, making it more accessible across different social classes, in ways that paintings and sculptures never could. This challenges the distinction between high art and craft. The materiality and processes are key to understanding its cultural impact.