Bevroren rivier met schaatsers bij een boerderij 1610 - 1617

This is an anonymous etching, showing a frozen river with skaters by a farm. The image is made through a labor-intensive printmaking process called etching. The artist would have coated a metal plate with a waxy, acid-resistant substance, then scratched an image into the coating with a needle. The plate was then immersed in acid, which bit into the exposed metal lines. Finally, the plate would be inked, and the image transferred to paper under great pressure using a printing press. You can really see the hand of the artist at work here, in the controlled precision of the lines. The fineness of the etching technique allows for capturing the detail of everyday life: the skaters enjoying their leisure, and the textures of the buildings and the landscape. These lines create a scene imbued with a sense of both serenity and activity. Considering the printmaking process alongside the subject, the image embodies a fusion of skilled craft, artistic vision, and observation of daily life. By appreciating this, we enrich our understanding and challenge traditional hierarchies of art and craft.