Ruiter houdt een ander gezadeld paard aan de teugel vast 1676 - 1742

Georg Philipp Rugendas made this print of a horseman with two horses, its title in English is 'Horseman Holds a Second Saddled Horse by the Rein.' The linear precision of the etching medium is on full display here. The artist would have used a sharp needle to draw through a wax ground on a copper plate. That plate was then submerged in acid, which bit into the exposed lines. The deeper the bite, the darker the line that would print. See how Rugendas uses this technique to give volume to the horses and the figures, and to create a sense of depth in the landscape. Consider the labor involved: not only the artist’s skilled hand, but also the work of the horses, and that of the person who trained them. Though small, the print gives us a glimpse into a whole world of work, skill, and materiality. It reminds us that images themselves are also made things.