2-727-029 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Delpech Lithographic Print Shop, c. 1818. The Delpech shop was a printing and retail establishment in Paris. Since the lithographic printing process is complex, requiring stones, presses, and skilled printers, artists went to workshops to make prints. Artists liked the medium's flexibility: while one could draw freely, it was also possible to execute an extremely detailed rendering. Further, while rich blacks could be achieved for shadows so could a great tonal range of grays. Since numerous impressions can be printed from the lithographic stone, this new printmaking technique made it possible to reproduce images inexpensively. Consequently, by 1818, it was a very popular medium, and as this contemporary image depicts, prints could be purchased either singly or in albums. The boy carrying a lithographic stone on his head was probably going to deliver it to one of the artists employed by Delpech.