Self-Portrait at Age Twenty-Eight 1530

Editor: This is Heinrich Aldegrever's "Self-Portrait at Age Twenty-Eight," made in 1530. It’s an engraving, so essentially a print. What strikes me most is the detail achieved with line alone. How do you read this piece? Curator: As a materialist, I immediately look at the means of production. Engraving wasn’t simply about representing reality; it was labor. Think about the artist’s tools, the metal plate, the pressure, the skill developed through apprenticeship. The density of those lines speaks to the time invested and, critically, the act of artistic production itself as work. It also democratized the image through reproducible commodity – what does it mean that Aldegrever circulated his image, not in paint for the wealthy, but in multiples to the masses? Editor: That’s fascinating! I hadn’t thought about the socio-economic aspect of printmaking itself. Did that influence his choice of subject? Curator: Absolutely. Self-portraiture in print speaks to the artist's growing awareness of self, his role in the commercial market, and his own hand in image production and distribution. We see Aldegrever advertising his craftsmanship. It isn’t just self-promotion, but it's asserting the value of a craft often separated from "high" art. Editor: So the choice of engraving, versus painting, elevates the status of craft? Curator: Precisely. And notice how his clothing, though seemingly refined, are depicted with clear attention to fabric and texture. It calls attention to the material and even the labor required for its construction as well. It challenges the very boundaries we put around art and manufacture, artist and artisan. Editor: This has totally shifted how I see the piece! It's no longer just about the individual, but about labor and artistic self-awareness. Curator: Exactly! Considering art as the product of labor gives us richer readings beyond aesthetic value.