The Studio Journal: Favorite Artists 16

Friday, October 22, 2021

Favorite Artists 16 - Albrecht Durer

"Self Portrait at 13," silverpoint

For the past few years this Favorite Artists series has spotlighted a number of my favorites but to my surprise Albrecht Durer (1471-1528) has yet to receive a full post. He was an indisputable great whose work comprises a wide range of media and genres. His expertise in oil, watercolor, ink, print making, and other artistic pursuits marks him as one of the very greatest of all time.

Albrecht Durer was born in Nuremburg to a goldsmith with the same name (Durer the Elder) and his wife. By age thirteen he was obviously a talented draftsman, even before four years of apprenticeship. Near the end of his training he made a diptych (or possibly two pendant portraits) of his parents (below). The portrait of his father has been known for a long while, but the portrait of his mother was only rediscovered forty years ago.

"Portrait of the Artist's Father," oil on panel, 1490

"Portrait of the Artist's Mother," oil on panel, 1490

After his apprenticeship he traveled, spending time in Venice, where he was exposed to the great works and masters of his day. Returning to Nuremburg in 1495, he began an exceptional career as a painter and print maker and was famous all over Europe. In

"The Four Horsemen," woodcut, 1498

particular, his series of 15 woodcuts depicting scenes from the Christian Book of Revelation, Apocalypse (below), was most famous. He seems to have learned early on that there was good income in sales of prints and made many throughout his career. But he was a not only a master oil painter but also a master of watercolor, as his Large Piece of Turf (1503) and other works clearly demonstrate.

In 1505 he again journeyed to Italy, but as a famous artist he gained commissions and more fame. While there he visited Venice again but also spent time in Bologna, Florence, and Rome. His Christ Among the Doctors (1506) shows the influence of daVinci--note the grotesque faces. By 1507 he had returned to Nuremburg but with a wealth of influences from the southern Renaissance. His reputation continued to grow throughout the rest of his life, so that the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian commissioned him and kept him busy until 1519. Durer remains the premier artist of the northern Renaissance.

Below are a selection from Durer's vast oeuvre, including probably his most famous "Young Hare," a watercolor.