Advertentie voor het tijdschrift Harper's New Monthly Magazine 1895 - 1900

This advertisement for Harper's New Monthly Magazine was created by an anonymous artist using color lithography, a printing technique reliant on the skilled labor of transferring an image from stone or metal onto paper. The print’s bold graphic style, with its simplified forms and striking red, black, and white palette, reflects the influence of Japanese woodblock prints and the Arts and Crafts movement’s emphasis on clear design. The image depicts a figure in vaguely historical garb, perhaps meant to evoke a sense of timelessness and cultural authority. However, the advert also reveals the complex economics of mass media. It boasts of Harper's large circulation, but also hints at the "great expense of production," while assuring readers that the price remains a mere shilling. The image thus reflects the increasing industrialization of publishing, balancing artistic expression with the demands of mass consumption. It invites us to consider how commercial imperatives shape artistic choices, and challenges the hierarchy between art and commerce.