Realism's Edge

The etching revival that flourished in France during the 1860s and 1870s was characterized by images of everyday urban and rural life. These works teetered on the edge of technical and societal shifts that balanced representation with spontaneity and sought to idealize rustic labor as industrialization threatened to destroy it. The dozen works on view in Realism’s Edge existed on the edge of original and reproductive, real and inventive, sketchy and descriptive, while chronicling the romanticized worker and celebrating leisurely pursuits.