VGERMANY
Informer chapters, we have followed the origin of woodcut and engraving in Germany, to the end of the fifteenth century; we have seen woodcut grow from the crude conceits of the early craftsman to illustrations of distinct artistic merit; we have followed engraving from its origin in the goldsmith’s shop to the expressive beauty of Martin Schongauer’s plates. Both are to culminate during the early sixteenth century. At this time Maximilian reigned over the vast German Empire: “Massimiliano pochi denari” the Italians called him, because of the insufficiency of the imperial resources. Ambitious to perpetuate the glory of his illustrious house, yet quite unable to vie with the Pope and Italian princes in the erection of sumptuous edifices, the Emperor saw in the effective and inexpensive woodcut a means oftransmitting to posterity a record of his own deeds and adventures and of the virtues of his ancestors. The leading German artists of the time were employed on designs for their imperial patron, chiefly Hans Burgkmair of Augsburg, and Albrecht Dürer of Nuremberg. With Dürer we reach the zenith of the graphic arts in Germany. He stands, a monumental figure, seen from afar, influencing—not only his German contemporaries, but the artists of Italy and of the Low Countries. Dürer was a thoughtful, forceful, imaginative leader; he was more—he had thought out the resources, the latent possibilities of engraving and of woodcut, he knew their limitations and the manner of presentation most adequate for either process. These principles of treatment are illustrated in his prints, set forth so clearly as to be readily understood and applied by other engravers, by other designers for woodcut. For this reason he has become a teacher for all times. His development may be followed through many stages, from his early manner, imitative of fifteenth-century masters, to the pictorial finish and wonderful play of light in his grand “St. Jerome in his Study.” Italian influence is felt in many of his early plates, the “Effect of Jealousy,” for instance, the “Apollo and Diana,” or the charming “Madonna with the Monkey”; but his vigorous individuality was not swayed long nor impaired by these Southern charms which were soon to overwhelm Northern art. Even in the days when young Dürer responds with enthusiasm to the power, to the passionate energy of Mantegna, his German characteristics are plainly apparent; I am thinking of his famous series of illustrations to the Apocalypse. Take the powerful print of the “Four Horsemen,” with their resistless onward rush, violent action vividly expressed, every figure, every detail instinct with close scrutiny and conscientious rendering of nature. Then as to technique, see how outline and shade-stroke are made to yieldtheir full measure of expressiveness. None of the uniform diagonal shading of early Italian masters is found in these woodcuts; nor shall we find such summary treatment in Dürer’s engravings. If we turn to his “Arms with the Skull,” for instance, we see there no mere suggestion of shadow, every line tells. The outline swells and accents the form, the shading-strokes curve and bend to accent the rounding, the modeling of the figure; the quality, strength, tonality of the line varies with every texture which is to be expressed, such as the metal of the helmet, the feathers on the crest, the cloth, the leather, the wood, the hair. The modest means of black lines and white paper, which at first had seemed barely sufficient for suggestive outline and indications of the rounding of form, are now becoming a medium fit for the presentation of all the infinite phenomena of visible nature. From the large, predominant figures massed in the immediate foreground of early woodcut series like the Apocalypse,or the large Passion, Dürer progresses to a deepening of the scene in the serene woodcut illustrations of the “Life of the Virgin.” We are led along the pleasant, peaceful paths of life, we are spared the anguish and suffering of the previous series. In this illustration, for instance, we see the Holy Family at rest in Egypt; Joseph is working at his trade, while the Mother watches her sleeping Babe, and angels busy themselves or gambol about the Holy group. The scene is laid in a pleasing German landscape, among low hills, which carry out the serenity of the composition.
APOCALYPSE: THE FOUR HORSEMENWoodcut. Albrecht Dürer
APOCALYPSE: THE FOUR HORSEMENWoodcut. Albrecht Dürer
APOCALYPSE: THE FOUR HORSEMEN
Woodcut. Albrecht Dürer
ARMS WITH THE SKULLAlbrecht Dürer
ARMS WITH THE SKULLAlbrecht Dürer
ARMS WITH THE SKULL
Albrecht Dürer
LIFE OF THE VIRGIN: REST IN EGYPTWoodcut. Albrecht Dürer
LIFE OF THE VIRGIN: REST IN EGYPTWoodcut. Albrecht Dürer
LIFE OF THE VIRGIN: REST IN EGYPT
Woodcut. Albrecht Dürer
The fullness of Dürer’s powers as an engraver is manifested in the three plates which typify man’s attitude toward life. First comes the good, steadfast knight, the champion of righteousness, unmindful of his weird escort of death and a hellish monster as he wends his way through a dark defile to his home on a distant sunlit hill. We then see despondent, bitter Melancholy, vainlydemanding of science the answer to life’s riddle. Finally, we come to St. Jerome, serene in his chosen solitude: a mind resigned, at peace with the world which has been left behind. These engravings take a very high rank, indeed, in German art. Such technique of engraving as that here found had never before been even approached: broad gleams of sunlight brighten the room, striking the walls and floor; in the silvery half-light every texture, every substance is expressed by differentiations of the graver-stroke. Yet with all the infinite detail which abounds in the plate, the tonality is so sustained and detail so discreetly introduced, that the general feeling, after all, is one of simplicity.
ST. JEROME IN HIS STUDYAlbrecht Dürer
ST. JEROME IN HIS STUDYAlbrecht Dürer
ST. JEROME IN HIS STUDY
Albrecht Dürer
One other aspect of Dürer’s genius must be introduced, namely, his mastery in portraiture. In the strong face of Cardinal Albrecht of Mayence, the keenest observation of the man is revealed with means astonishingly simple. Notice how far fromextreme depth the shadings have been kept; all in the range of silvery grays, which Dürer sought in preference to dark shadows. The values in the figure, the arms and the inscription have all received careful consideration from this master whose genius was, indeed, the faculty of taking infinite pains.
CARDINAL ALBRECHT OF MAYENCEAlbrecht Dürer
CARDINAL ALBRECHT OF MAYENCEAlbrecht Dürer
CARDINAL ALBRECHT OF MAYENCE
Albrecht Dürer
From this brief glance at the great Nuremberg artist, we must turn now to his Northern contemporary, Lucas van Leyden, likewise a painter-engraver, and a solitary figure in the Netherlands at that period. Bred in the realistic maxims of the fifteenth century, his Northern origin asserts itself in the careful detail and truthful presentation of nature, in the characteristic types of his figures. Truthful rendering of natural facts—as has been mentioned before—is a quality common to Northern artists. Dürer, in his fondness for psychological themes, is in tune with the humanists of his time. Leyden, though strongly influenced by the German master, has not Dürer’s depth of thought. He doesnot infuse that deeper meaning into his plates. Following the bent of his Germanic mind, he reverts to the simple, daily scenes of life, and when he undertakes to render scenes from other times and from distant places, he transforms them into events of his own day and his own surroundings. He can thus express himself with the directness of an eye-witness, and therein lies much of the charm of his work, which was much appreciated even in Italy. One of the few large plates of Lucas van Leyden will illustrate his artistic and technical powers. The “Adoration of the Magi,” broad in composition, sober and harmonious in the handling of the graver, typically Northern in feeling, is perhaps the finest of his achievements. Later in life his restless, searching mind was diverted to the allurements of Italian grace of form, and gave itself up to its influence without reserve.
ADORATION OF THE MAGILucas van Leyden
ADORATION OF THE MAGILucas van Leyden
ADORATION OF THE MAGI
Lucas van Leyden
A great wave of enthusiasm for Southern ideals swept over the entire North about thethird decade of the sixteenth century. It established the supremacy of Italian standards of artistic merit, which—as we know—were not such as to give new life to the graphic arts. This wave of Italian influence was felt in the immediate following of Dürer, in that group of painter-engravers, known to us as the “little masters,” thoughlittleonly in the size of their plates. A high standard of technique is common to them all, with variations in their perfection. Variations there are also in the measure in which they yielded to Italian influence. Their graver was devoted to the rendering of a great variety of subjects; Northern characteristics are still evident in their portraits, in their Biblical scenes with German types of figures. Northern customs are depicted with Northern minuteness; on the other hand, the study of Southern models has developed in these Northern engravers an appreciation of the beauty of the nude, which is freely introduced in mythological, allegorical,Biblical, and other subjects, and very skillfully handled. We are apt not to appreciate the gravity of this Italian invasion, of this Southern supremacy in Northern art. Ideal perfection of form was a new language to the Germanic artists, accustomed to the realistic, faithful rendering of nature as they saw it, with all its facts, perfections, and imperfections alike. The change often meant that the artist forgot his native tongue, if the expression may be used—a harsh tongue, if you will, but sincere and expressive; in return he acquired, often but imperfectly, a new language in which his expression needs must be imitative, not original.
TOURNAMENTWoodcut. Lucas Cranach
TOURNAMENTWoodcut. Lucas Cranach
TOURNAMENT
Woodcut. Lucas Cranach
The true Northern spirit still greets us in the woodcut productions of that period. Woodcut was used for subjects of wide popular interest, for Passion series, portraits, religious subjects, and all manner of illustration. Dürer had used the relief process extensively for such purposes, likewise Burgkmair, who was, with Dürer, one of the foremost designers for the extensive publications of Emperor Maximilian. Lucas Cranach elected the strong, emphatic woodcut for much of his graphic work, prominently employed in the service of the Reformation. An example of his work, this tournament scene, is a reminder of the times in which he dwelt, and an illustration of his vivid power of presentation, typically Northern with its crowded figures.
Other masters there are in plenty, whom we must neglect, as we shift our abode to Basle for a moment. We find ourselves here, about 1516, in the midst of a thriving publishing center. Enterprising printers seek to secure pleasing decorations and illustrations for their scientific and literary output. They look for a good draughtsman to design some tasteful headings and end-pieces, borders and initials, and are well pleased with the samples submitted by a young newcomer, by name Hans Holbein. At first the cutting of his designs offers some difficulties, but whenthe right man has appeared, when Hans Lützelburger has joined his skill to the genius of Holbein, their joint productions attain a peerless mastery. High summits in art always invite comparison; this is true of Dürer and Holbein, even though these two great German masters are so widely different from each other. Dürer is nowhere greater than in engraving, while Holbein excels in painting; both are masters of woodcut. Dürer, with his scholarly, analytical nature, ponders over the deep, essential meaning which underlies the multitude of his observations, and sets down his conclusions in types broadly generalized. His St. Jerome—to quote but one instance—is not so much a specific old man in his study as the expression of a mental attitude common to mankind generally. Holbein is more a man of impulse, quick to express himself in a direct manner full of life. He is more sensual, and has much feeling for pleasing form and a beautiful flow of lines. He accents the eventitself more strongly than Dürer, who is given to express himself rather by association of ideas. It is a significant fact that Dürer chooses his subjects with preference from the figurative New Testament, with its parables, while Holbein prefers to illustrate the Old Testament, a book of essentially historical character. Every scene is plainly told and intensely human in Holbein’s Biblical illustrations, as well as in that masterpiece of his, the “Dance of Death.” We cannot but marvel at the feeling of spaciousness in these small prints, at the lifelike action of the expressive little figures, at the perfect harmony of these figures and their surroundings.
At the time of Dürer’s death, in 1528, the long period of warfare, devastation, and misery had begun which was to end only after the Thirty Years’ War. Emperor Maximilian was dead; Charles V had broken the power of France in Italy; his mercenaries had sacked Rome, and incidentally ruinedMarcantonio, the Italian engraver. His promising school was dispersed. It was a period of decline, both north and south of the Alps.
From that time on, the successive influences of Italy, of the Netherlands, and of France sway the character of German art. A clever superficiality develops, which adapts itself to the characteristics of the art in vogue. Etching, the sister art of engraving, cannot boast any signal triumphs during this period of German art, although, from the early days of its adoption, it was used to a considerable extent by the Hopfer family. Dürer experimented with the process, but soon returned to engraving. The greatest German etcher of the following (seventeenth) century, Wenzel Hollar followed the Earl of Arundel to England, there to build up his fame.