Oude sergeant geeft een groep jongens les 1834

Nicolas Toussaint Charlet made this print of an old sergeant teaching a group of boys, using etching and engraving. Look closely, and you'll notice the incredible detail achieved by incising lines into a metal plate, revealing the textures of clothing and the expressions on the faces of both the sergeant and his young pupils. The linear quality of engraving lends itself well to rendering the crisp military uniform and the ramshackle schoolroom. The composition itself is rooted in the social context of post-Napoleonic France. Here you can see the emphasis on discipline and order, perhaps a reflection of the changing times. The printmaking process itself is labor-intensive, requiring skilled craftsmanship and attention to detail. Each line, each shadow, is carefully etched or engraved, resulting in a complex image. In some ways printmaking democratized artmaking, but it also required the specialized labor of skilled craftsmen. This print asks us to consider the intersection of art, labor, and social commentary in 19th-century France.