Jacht op struisvogels 1598

This print, “Jacht op struisvogels,” or “Ostrich Hunt,” was made by Antonio Tempesta in the late 16th or early 17th century. It is an etching, meaning that Tempesta would have drawn into a wax ground on a metal plate, then used acid to bite the exposed lines. The character of this print resides in the etched line. Notice how Tempesta used varying densities of marks to create shadow and volume. See, for example, the muscular rumps of the horses, the mass of the ostriches' bodies, and the foliage in the background. This demonstrates an impressive technical mastery. But there’s also a social dimension here. Printmaking was crucial to the development of early capitalism. This is because prints are relatively easy to produce in quantity and circulate widely. Tempesta made many hunting scenes. These would have been desirable commodities for Europe’s growing middle class. The appeal lay in the fantasy of aristocratic leisure, now made available to all, at least as an image.