Eugenie wordt toegesproken door haar dienstmeid terwijl ze een militaire onderscheiding omhooghoudt 1860

This print by Rudolf Stang captures a moment between Eugenie and her maid. The medium here is key: it's an etching, which is an intensive process of repeatedly coating a metal plate with wax, drawing into it with a needle to expose the metal, and then dipping the plate in acid. The acid bites into the metal where exposed, creating lines that will hold ink. The dense network of fine lines you see creates the image. Consider the amount of labor that's required, not only by the artist, but by the person being depicted: Eugenie, presumably a woman of privilege, is being attended to by her maid, a stark visual reminder of the class divisions of the time. The etching process, with its steps and use of acid to bite into the metal, almost mirrors the biting social commentary embedded in the scene. Paying attention to these elements allows us to consider how skill, labor, and social context are inseparable from the image itself.