Pages

About Durer Paintings

By Darren Hartley


The best known Durer paintings were 18 engravings of the Apocalypse cycle, the most interesting of which was The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, done in 1498. Albrecht Durer's early training was in drawing, woodcutting and printing, which remained his main and favourite media throughout his artistic career.

The fame of powerful Durer paintings was broadcasted through engravings, and Italian artists started drawing on them for ideas. Albrecht left his native city for a 4 year period, presumably to visit Cologne and the Netherlands. His travels took him to Italy twice, in 1494-95 and 1505-07, visiting Venice and Bologne, and most probably, Florence and Rome.

The wealthy Nuremberg citizens were among the other patrons of Durer paintings, consisting of religious works. Among the pieces commissioned by these patrons included Lot Fleeing with His Daughters from Sodom, The Paumgartner Altarpiece, Lamentation for Christ and The Adoration of the Holy Trinity. These commissions were completed between 1498 and 1511.

It was in 1495 that Albrecht established his own workshop in Nuremberg. Durer paintings consisted of a lot of watercolour landscapes and nature studies throughout Albrecht's life. Most notable of these landscapes are Saint John's Church, House by a Pond, Willow Mill, A Young Hare and The Large Turf.

Other than his Durer paintings, Albrecht also wrote and published theoretical works such as Manual of Measurement and Various Instructions for the Fortification of Towns, Castles and other Localities. These manuscripts were written in 1525 and 1527, respectively.

Durer paintings consisted of magnificent altarpieces and powerful portraits. Albrecht's drawings and watercolours are impressive for their diversity in subject matter and for the variety of media in which they were produced. Albrecht truly had a major influence on the development of European art.




About the Author:



0 comments:

Post a Comment