Edouard Manet, Bust-Length Portrait (Manet en buste) 1864 - 1865

This is Edgar Degas’s portrait of Edouard Manet, made with etching, a printmaking technique that uses acid to cut into a metal plate, which is then inked and pressed onto paper. The material qualities of the print are significant here. Notice the density of lines that describe Manet’s beard and coat, versus the relative openness of the background. This contrast creates depth and volume, and shows off Degas’s mastery of the etching process. To make this image, Degas would have covered the plate with a waxy, acid-resistant ground, then drawn into it with a sharp needle. The plate was then submerged in acid, which bit into the exposed lines. Etching was a favorite medium of artists like Rembrandt, who elevated it to the level of high art. By embracing printmaking, Degas, like many of his contemporaries, blurred the boundaries between traditional fine art and more accessible forms of production. And remember, every impression pulled from the plate is an original. The beauty of this work lies not only in its aesthetic appeal, but also in its demonstration of skill, labor, and the democratization of art through printmaking.