Alois Senefelder

Born Alois Johann Nepomuk Franz Senefelder in Prague in 1771, Senefelder initially pursued a career in the performing arts. He studied law briefly in Ingolstadt, but the death of his father in 1791 compelled him to support his family, leading him to become an actor and playwright. His early success with a play titled *Connoisseur of Girls* hinted at a different path, but it was the practical challenges of printing his works that would ultimately change the course of art hist…