Deel van de rand van een kaart van Suriname (rechterdeel) 1737

This is the right section of a map border of Suriname, made by J.G. de la Croix using engraving. Look closely, and you’ll see how the technique has allowed the artist to create an extraordinary level of detail with nothing more than lines. The key to this level of detail is the engraver’s burin: a handheld steel tool, used to manually incise lines into a copper plate. Ink is then applied to the plate, and then wiped off so that it remains only in the engraved lines. Finally, paper is pressed firmly against the plate, and the image is transferred. The material properties of copper allow for extremely fine, closely-spaced lines, and thus a very detailed image. Consider the labor involved to create the design, the engraving, the printing – all to make a map, itself a tool for the control of territory and resources. It certainly makes you think about the complicated relationship between art, labor, and power.