Portret van Laurens Jansz. Coster 1824

This is a portrait of Laurens Jansz. Coster, made by Philippus Velijn in the early 19th century, using the technique of etching. The image is all about line work. Look closely, and you’ll see that the face, clothing, and background are built up from many tiny, closely spaced marks. These are made by drawing into a metal plate with a sharp needle, then bathing the plate in acid, which bites into the lines. Ink is then pressed into these grooves, and the image transferred to paper. Etching allowed for relatively easy duplication, and the proliferation of images. Velijn would have been part of a substantial workshop, with labor divided among many hands. Though his name is on the print, many others would have been involved in its production and distribution. In this sense, the print is a fascinating artifact of early industrial image-making. It collapses any distinction between ‘high art’ and commercial work.