Aangemeerd schip wordt geladen 1847 - 1909

This is an etching by Edgar Alfred Baes, a 19th-century Belgian artist, depicting a ship being loaded. The method of etching is crucial here. To create this image, Baes would have covered a metal plate with a waxy, acid-resistant ground. Using a sharp needle, he scratched away lines, exposing the metal. When dipped in acid, these lines would be etched into the plate. Ink is then applied, filling these grooves, and the surface wiped clean before being pressed onto paper. Consider the kind of labor on display here. The etching itself involves skilled handwork, a kind of craft. But the scene it represents is even more telling: laborers loading cargo, a picture of commerce and industry. By using the etched line to represent the scene, Baes blurs the line between fine art and the everyday world of labor, reminding us that all objects – whether artworks or goods – are the result of making. It encourages us to think about the amount of work involved in the production process.