Scylla en Glaucus 1606

Antonio Tempesta made this small print, "Scylla en Glaucus," using an etching technique. This involved coating a metal plate with wax, drawing through it, and then bathing the plate in acid to bite the exposed lines. The character of the etched line has everything to do with the image's qualities. Notice its crisp precision. It is a medium well-suited to Tempesta’s detailed style. Look at the scales of Glaucus’s tail, for example, or the subtle rendering of the water. Etching was a relatively new technology at this time, allowing for the relatively quick production of images, which could then be widely distributed. This was essential for artists like Tempesta, who made their living by producing and selling prints to a growing market of collectors. The price point of this artwork would have made it accessible to the emerging middle class, moving art out of the realm of the elite. The democratization of art making, and the new emphasis on the skilled labor of the artist as a kind of industrial producer, shows the changing landscape of art at this time.