Portret van een onbekende jongeman met bontmantel en bontmuts 1771

This print, "Portret van een onbekende jongeman met bontmantel en bontmuts" – or, Portrait of an Unknown Young Man with Fur Coat and Fur Hat - was made by G.B. Rössel. Look closely, and you'll see this isn't just a straightforward reproduction of the original. The artist C. Hutin created the original image in 1767. Rössel made this copy by etching it in 1777. In etching, a metal plate is coated with wax, and then scratched with a needle to expose the metal. When acid is applied, it bites into the exposed areas, creating lines. These lines hold ink, which is then transferred to paper under pressure. Rössel skillfully mimicked the tones and textures of the original painting using this process. While the original painting may have emphasized the sitter's status through luxurious fur, Rössel’s print makes the image more accessible. It democratizes the image, bringing it to a wider audience through the labor-intensive, yet reproducible, medium of etching. This act of translation, from painting to print, highlights the social and economic forces at play in the art world of the time, and the relationship between labor, value, and representation.