St. Christopher

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St. Christopher

Artist Albrecht Altdorfer (German, ca. 1480-1538)

Date1513

DimensionsH. 6 5/8 in. (16.7 cm): W. 4 3/4 in. (12 cm)

MediumWoodcut

ClassificationPrints

Credit LineWilliam J. Hitchcock Fund in Memory of Grace J. Hitchcock

Object number

1989.40

Not on View

Label TextAlbrecht Altdorfer was an independent artist; neither Dürer nor the Italian Renaissance influenced him. He experimented with many techniques, including etching on iron, and with multi-block color woodcuts. In this print we see a high degree of abstraction (not true to nature) and lack of detail. The effects of light and dark are of primary importance in this image. We can also sense the spontaneity of drawing directly on the woodblock, which was later carved and printed.Published ReferencesBartsch, Adam. Le Peintre Graveur, vol. VIII, Leipzig, 1866, p. 79 no. 53.

Hollstein, F.W.H. German Engravings, Etchings and Woodcuts ca. 1400-1700, vol. 1, Amsterdam, 1954 (?), p. 257, no. 56.

Winzinger, Franz, Albrecht Altdorfer, Graghik: Holzschuitte, Kupferstiche, Radierungen, Munich, 1963, pp. 64-65, no. 24; for watermark information, p. 147, no. 27.

Koch, Robert A., ed. The Illustrated Bartsch, vol. 14 (Early German Masters), New York, 1980, p. 159, no. 53.

Exhibition HistoryThe Passion and the Apocalypse: Albrecht Dürer's Renaissance, Oct 1, 2004 - Jan 2, 2005Comparative ReferencesSee also Yale University Art Gallery (Charles Talbot, Alan Shestuck et al), PRINTS and DRAWING of the DANUBE SCHOOL, New Haven, 1969, pp.39-40, cat. no. 26.

cf. Mielke, Hans." Albrecht Altdorfer, Zeichnungen, Deckfarbenmalerei, Druckgraphik". Berlin, 1988, p. 160, cat. no. 76 (illus.)