The Dressmaker
Medium
Etching on laid paper
Dimensions
sheet: 7 15/16 x 9 7/16 in. (20.2 x 24 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Eric Gillis, 2011
Accession Number
2011.383.1
Tags
Art Historical Context
Henri Jean Augustin de Braekeleer’s *The Dressmaker*, created around 1863, a quiet glimpse into mid-nineteenth-century domestic life. The Belgian artist, known for his sensitive realist approach, captures a woman absorbed in her craft, likely seated at a worktable with fabric and tools. Rendered as an etching on laid paper, the small-scale print (roughly 8 by 9 inches) emphasizes intimate detail and texture, inviting viewers to appreciate the quiet dignity of everyday labor. Etching allowed de Braekeleer to achieve fine lines and subtle tonal variations, a technique well suited to genre scene...