Art of Writing, from Encyclopédie

Art Historical Context

Created in 1760 by the engraver Aubin, "Art of Writing" is one of the many illustrative plates from Denis Diderot and Jean le Rond d'Alembert’s monumental *yclopédie*. This ambitious project sought to gather and disseminate all branches of human knowledge during the height of the Enlightenment. The plate belongs to a section devoted to the mechanical arts, celebrating writing as both a skilled craft and an essential tool for learning and communication. As an engraving printed on cream laid paper, the work exemplifies the reproductive technique that made the *Encyclopédie* visually rich and widely accessible. Engraving allowed fine lines and precise details to be transferred onto paper in large editions, enabling readers across Europe to study the tools, gestures, and processes involved in the art of writing. Such illustrations transformed abstract ideas into tangible, educational images that encouraged curiosity and practical understanding. Today, this print in the Art Institute of Chicago’s collection reminds us how eighteenth-century printmaking helped spread Enlightenment values of reason, clarity, and shared knowledge. Its modest size—roughly 40 by 26 centimeters—belies its role in shaping how people visualized the intellectual tools of their age.