Vier lambriseringen 1752 - 1794

These four paneling designs were etched by Pierre Gabriel Berthault in the late 18th century. They are elevations and profiles of different paneling for walls, revealing a world of craft, design, and materiality. Look closely, and you’ll notice the variations in the ornamentation and the profiles for installation. This print captures the way wooden panels were produced in series, with labor divided in workshops. The crisp lines of the etching beautifully articulate the intended forms, emphasizing the hand skills that would have been necessary to execute these designs. This was a world of specialized labor, one far removed from the alleged purity of “fine art.” These panels were architectural elements mass-produced for wealthy clients, and they speak to the blurring of craft and industry at the cusp of the industrial revolution. Ultimately, these images show us that even the most functional or decorative object carries a complex web of social and economic relations.