Winterlandschap met vaart en molens 1889 - 1897

Willem Steelink created this winter landscape using etching, a printmaking technique that allows for finely detailed monochrome images. The plate would have been covered with a waxy ground, and then scratched into with a sharp needle, exposing the metal underneath. Immersed in acid, the exposed lines would bite into the metal. This process dictates the print's appearance, with the etched lines creating texture and tone, from the snowy ground to the distant windmills. Steelink employed the skills involved in etching, and these would have been honed through traditional art training. Yet the print also captures a scene of everyday life: a figure trudging along a towpath, boats laden with cargo, and windmills that speak to the industrialization of the Dutch landscape. By focusing on the materials and making of this winter scene, we can appreciate how artists like Steelink blurred the boundaries between fine art and the representation of ordinary life.