Gezicht op La Rochelle 1638

This view of La Rochelle was made by an anonymous artist with ink on paper, and demonstrates printmaking’s power as a tool for documentation and dissemination. The artist employed a combination of techniques. First, the image would have been incised into a metal plate, probably copper, with lines defining the forms of the city, landscape, and sky. Ink was then applied to the plate, carefully wiped, and then paper laid on top before being run through a press. Finally, the print was hand-colored. The result is a fascinating tension between mechanical reproduction and individualized facture. While the print medium allowed for the widespread distribution of this image, the laborious hand-coloring invested each impression with a unique quality, raising it above mere reproduction. This tension speaks to the broader relationship between craft and industry at the time, and to the value placed on skill, labor, and ultimately, the artistic touch.