Oude man met hand bij zijn neus 1839 - 1879

Florent Nicolas Crabeels made this tiny print of an old man with his hand to his nose using etching, a printmaking technique, likely during the late 19th century. In etching, a metal plate is coated with a waxy, acid-resistant ground. The artist scratches an image into this ground, exposing the metal, and then the plate is submerged in acid, which bites away at the exposed lines. The longer the plate sits in the acid, the deeper and darker the lines will be in the final print. Ink is then applied to the etched lines, the surface wiped clean, and the image transferred to paper using a press. Look closely at the image: the network of fine lines and cross-hatching creates a sense of depth, shadow, and texture. The artist's hand is evident in the controlled, deliberate marks that define the man's features, clothing, and thoughtful expression. The material qualities of the metal plate and the corrosive action of the acid directly shaped the artwork's visual appearance, blurring the boundaries between artistic skill, material process, and manual labor. Considering the material and the making helps us appreciate not only the image, but also the rich history and skilled labor behind its creation.