En bondegård 1850

Peter Ølsted created this etching of a farmyard using metal plate and etching ink. The etcher’s mark-making becomes very evident in the image. The character of this print emerges directly from the etching process, where the artist would have applied an acid-resistant coating to a metal plate, drawn into that coating with a sharp needle to expose the metal, and then bathed the plate in acid. This biting process creates the lines that hold the ink. The depth of the lines control the tonality of the final print, with longer etching times creating darker, heavier lines. Notice the density of the shading along the thatched roofs, the uneven walls, and the yard; Ølsted uses this to describe the weathered surfaces with a textural language of marks and lines. As a print, this work would have been made in multiples, offering an affordable glimpse into rural life, with labor and production processes captured in the image itself. So, next time you are looking at a print, remember the making process, and its significance in the wider artistic and social context.