Feeding the Hungry
Medium
Etching with engraving
Dimensions
Sheet (trimmed): 10 3/16 × 12 13/16 in. (25.8 × 32.6 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1926
Accession Number
26.49.15
Tags
Art Historical Context
"Feeding the Hungry," collaborative etching and engraving from 1635 by French artists Abraham Bosse and Jean I Lebl, captures a poignant moment of communal charity. The scene likely depicts men and women distributing bread from baskets to the needy, with dogs adding a touch of everyday realism amid the gathering crowd. Measuring about 10 by 13 inches, this trimmed print exemplifies the intricate detail possible in 17th-century printmaking, allowing widespread dissemination of socially resonant images. Bosse, a master etcher renowned for his precise line work and genre scenes, often drew from ...
About the Artist
Abraham Bosse|Jean I Leblond · 1602–1676
Abraham Bosse (1604–1676) was a French printmaker and theorist whose approximately 1,600 etchings provide an unparalleled visual record of 17th-century French life. Born to Huguenot parents in Tours, he trained in Paris under Melchior Tavernier and became a devoted follower of Jacques Callot's technical innovations. Bosse's meticulous etchings depicted subjects ranging from daily life and fashion ...