Le Puy 1888 - 1934

Willem Adrianus Grondhout made this print, titled 'Le Puy', using etching techniques. An etching is made when an artist covers a metal plate with a waxy, acid-resistant substance, and then scratches an image into that coating, exposing the metal underneath. The plate is then dipped in acid, which bites into the exposed lines. Consider how the incised lines dictate the image. The artist has used short, light strokes to create subtle gradations in tone, building up to darker areas with dense cross-hatching. It's a labor-intensive process. But notice how the chosen subject also speaks to labor. You can see figures at the fountain, presumably local people, making use of the water source. The very architecture of the town suggests a modest scale of life, without grand gestures. Seeing these details allows us to expand our understanding of the print. It isn't just a picture, but a record of its making, and of the lives that it depicts.