Gezicht op de zijgevel van de Sint-Niklaaskerk in Gent 1928

This is Jules de Bruycker's "View of the Side Facade of the Saint Nicholas Church in Ghent", made using etching. Here, the artist scratches into a metal plate, applies ink, and then uses a press to transfer the image to paper. The final print bears the mark of this process, with a delicate web of lines creating a rich texture. The velvety blacks and soft grays give the image depth and atmosphere. De Bruycker was working in a time of great change, when industrialization was rapidly reshaping European cities. But rather than celebrating progress, he often focused on the grit and decay of urban life, emphasizing the weight of history in his compositions. Consider how the lines are used to describe the architecture, and the sense of labor and detail that went into building it. Etching is an inherently linear medium, which in this case echoes the careful construction of the church itself. By drawing our attention to these acts of making, De Bruycker asks us to think more deeply about the world around us.