Twee portretten van Anton Graff en Wilhelm Gottlieb Becker 1794

Daniel Nikolaus Chodowiecki made these portraits of Anton Graff and Wilhelm Gottlieb Becker, using etching on paper. Look closely, and you'll notice the fine lines and delicate shading – hallmarks of the etching process. To create this print, Chodowiecki would have coated a metal plate with a waxy, acid-resistant ground. He then used a needle to draw through the ground, exposing the metal beneath. When the plate was immersed in acid, the exposed lines would be bitten, creating grooves. The deeper the bite, the darker the line. The real skill here lies in controlling the acid, and knowing exactly how long to leave the plate submerged. This determined the depth and darkness of each line, giving the portraits their sense of depth and detail. This printmaking technique allowed for the relatively quick reproduction of images, making art more accessible to a wider audience, and tying it to the development of a market for images. So, next time you look at a print, think about the labor, the materials, and the social context that brought it into being.