French School, 18th Century

This still life of a printmaker's studio is intended to deceive the viewer. Though the corner cupboard and collection of objects suggest an interior, a stone work surface and an exterior space beyond – in the corner of which the sky is visible – locates the scene outdoors. A red chalk drawing is secured beneath a copper plate, on which a burin rests and a design is partially engraved. This painting serves as a valuable record of the tools and processes used in a printmaking studio in the eighteenth century. The trompe l'œil frame, partially covered by the drawing, effectively adds to the illusion of the composition.