Heilige Filippus 1639 - 1670

‘Heilige Filippus’ was made by Petrus Clouwet in the 17th century using engraving. The lines you see are not drawn with ink, but rather are the result of a skilled artisan using a tool called a burin to incise an image into a metal plate, in this case, probably copper. These tools were not cheap, and were only available to those with the means to buy them. The cross-hatching creates areas of tone and shadow that really give a sense of the figure’s presence. Look closely, and you can see the tremendous labor that went into producing this image. Think of the sharp eye and steady hand required. Engravings like this were part of a print culture that exploded in Europe at this time. A clever, relatively inexpensive way of distributing images, and knowledge, far and wide. So, by looking closely at the making of this print, we can appreciate both the skill of the engraver, and the broader forces of commerce and communication at play in 17th century Europe.