Richard Beard is an artist. 1 work is cataloged here, principally at Victoria and Albert Museum.

This 19th-century printmaker carved sharp portraits of Parisian streets and faces. His 1830 engraving Labitizky shows a scholar lost in a cluttered study, ink pots lined up like tiny soldiers. Look closely and you’ll spot a half-folded newspaper on the floor, maybe a political headline that felt urgent then.

Next, scan the scene for the way Beard’s lines catch the flicker of candlelight on a brass candlestick.