The Tailor, from Arts et Métiers
1838
Medium
Lithograph in black on buff wove paper
Dimensions
Image: 13.7 × 12.5 cm (5 7/16 × 4 15/16 in.); Sheet: 36.4 × 26.8 cm (14 3/8 × 10 9/16 in.)
Classification
lithograph
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
39985
Art Historical Context
Bernard Gaillot’s *The Tailor*, created in 1838, belongs to the series *Arts et Métiers*, which celebrates the skilled trades that sustained nineteenth-century French society. Executed as a lithograph in black on buff wove paper, the print captures the quiet concentration of a craftsman at work, reflecting the era’s growing interest in documenting everyday professions amid rapid industrialization. Lithography, a relatively new medium at the time, allowed artists to produce affordable, finely detailed images that reached wide audiences. Gaillot’s modest yet precise rendering highlights both th...