Design: Hands, from Encyclopédie
1762/77
Medium
Etching, with engraving, on cream laid paper
Dimensions
Image: 32.2 × 21 cm (12 11/16 × 8 5/16 in.); Plate: 35.2 × 22.5 cm (13 7/8 × 8 7/8 in.); Sheet: 40 × 26 cm (15 3/4 × 10 1/4 in.)
Classification
etching
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
148241
Art Historical Context
This delicate etching and engraving by Benoît-Louis Prévost captures a study of hands, originally created as a plate for the monumental *Encyclopédie* (1762–1777). Compiled under the direction of Denis Diderot and Jean le Rond d’Alembert, the *Encyclopédie* sought to organize and share practical knowledge across the arts and sciences during the Enlightenment. Prévost’s illustration would have served an educational purpose, demonstrating techniques of drawing or design for readers eager to master the fundamentals of artistic practice. The choice of etching combined with engraving allowed for c...