Portret van Christoph Bartholomäus Anton Migazzi

This is a portrait of Christoph Bartholomäus Anton Migazzi, made by Jakob Matthias Schmutzer using engraving techniques. Engraving is an intaglio process: the image is incised into a plate, usually copper, using a tool called a burin. The artist would have laboriously carved lines into the metal, with the depth and density determining the tonal range of the final print. Ink is then forced into these grooves, and the surface wiped clean. When paper is pressed against the plate, the image transfers. In Schmutzer's time, engraving was a key method for disseminating images widely, acting almost like a form of early mechanical reproduction. Prints like this one allowed for the circulation of portraits and other imagery to a broad audience. The skilled labor involved in creating the matrix contrasts with the potential for mass distribution, a paradox that speaks to the changing nature of art and labor in the age of industrialization.