Gezicht op Huis Bryanston 1785

This print, titled "Gezicht op Huis Bryanston," was made by an anonymous artist. It was published in March 1785 by I. Sewell Cornhill. It’s an etching, likely printed in multiple impressions. Etchings are made by covering a metal plate with a waxy ground, then scratching an image into that ground. The plate is then submerged in acid, which bites away at the exposed metal. The deeper the bite, the darker the line it will produce in the print. In this case, the etcher was particularly skilled, creating a full tonal range. The pastoral scene represents the estate of Henry William Portman, a member of the landed gentry. This was a time when control of land meant wealth and power. Prints like this one helped to circulate that image, as well as, to cement the status of the ruling class. The print itself, a multiple, affordable image, was also part of that system of production and consumption. It’s a small thing, but it speaks volumes about the economic and social order of the day.