Rokende man op een bankje voor de ruïne van het Huis Snaatburg te Maarssen 1801

Anthonie van den Bos created this print, "Smoking Man on a Bench in Front of the Ruins of Huis Snaatburg in Maarssen", using etching, a process that democratized image making in its time. The original drawing is translated into a precise network of lines on a copper plate. With focused labor and meticulous steps, the artist immersed the plate in acid, allowing the incised lines to 'bite' into the surface. Ink was then pressed into these lines, and the image transferred to paper. Look closely, and you can almost see Van den Bos’s hand guiding the etching needle, capturing the textures of crumbling brick and verdant foliage. This work speaks to a transformation in the means of production, both artistic and social. It represents a shift from unique handmade artworks to the possibility of repeatable images, circulated and consumed more widely. The print hints at a nostalgic view of a pre-industrial landscape, even as it embraces the possibilities of the modern age. It’s a reminder that every work of art is embedded in material conditions, and that making is always a social act.