A. Croquis

This 18th- or 19th-century printmaker left inked snapshots of daily life in crisp black-and-white. Their *H Beard Print Collection* captures everything from London street criers shouting “Hot pies!” to the neat stacks of wigs in barber shops along Fleet Street. Others show country fairs where families jostle past stalls of gingerbread or taverns spilling drunken song. The prints trade detail for speed, etching fleeting gestures and half-smiles into copper plates that turned out dozens of copies. Spot the next one by the way sunlight glances off a brass kettle or a cat freezes mid-pounce on cobblestones.