Manshoofd met lange baard 1587 - 1640

This is *Man's Head with a Long Beard* by Peter Paul Rubens, made using etching. Notice the contrast between the wild, free strokes that form the backdrop and the deliberate, detailed lines defining the face. The etching technique allows for a remarkable texture, a key element in conveying the subject’s age and wisdom. Rubens uses hatching and cross-hatching, to create depth and shadow. These techniques, common in printmaking, transform a flat surface into a field of texture and volume. The figure emerges, but it's the process of its making – the network of lines – that captures our attention. This interplay between representation and abstraction challenges the viewer. We're invited to decode, to unravel the visual language that Rubens employs. The artwork's emphasis on its own construction, its linear structure, reminds us that art is not just imitation, but a deliberate act of making and of meaning.