Alexandru Bănulescu

Alexandru Bănulescu liked to sneak into print shops after hours, leaving his copper-plate portraits on the press like unsigned love notes. His 1840s engraving of architect Gheorghe Orăscu looks like a daguerreotype—sharp glasses, ruffled collar—except the shadows are too soft, as if Bănulescu forgot to wipe the ink off his fingers. The plate still smells faintly of linseed oil and midnight coffee. Head to the print room, find Orăscu’s portrait hanging beside the press; it’s the one where the light sits just behind the sitter’s ear like a spotlight no one planned.