Technical Progress Illustrated in “The Penny Magazine” (1832–1845)

Abstract

The phenomenon of illustrated publications first introduced in England by “The Penny Magazine” in 1832, had a strong European resonance. The very low price, the popularisation of the most varied topics, and above all the illustrations of subjects from the past and present stimulated among the less affluent class a desire to acquire greater knowledge.

Our study addresses the communication of technological progress through the illustrations of the aforementioned English periodical, reflecting on the choice of subjects and observing their depiction in terms of graphic expression. Our focus is on the visual popularisation of the new bridges that were being built both in England and elsewhere in Europe. We have selected a few for their graphic beauty and because they are emblematic of the new construction methods being introduced at the time.

The result is on the one hand a kind of collection of bridge models, and on the other a graphic review of the ways in which these were portrayed. In both areas we can see the change under way caused both by innovative technologies and by illustrations designed to be particularly effective in terms of communication.

What emerges from those pages is an image of reality, as it was in the early and mid-19th century, decidedly poised between traditional representational models and fresh attempts at graphic renewal induced by original and little-known subjects, symbols of present-day tomorrow. The aim of the images is therefore to arouse the reader’s curiosity.