A short history of the life of Alfred Durer. Scientific treatises and other written sources

Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528) - German engraver and painter, one of the greatest masters of woodcuts.

Childhood, family

One of greatest artists Renaissance was born on May 21, 1471 in Nuremberg. His father was a jeweler who moved to Germany from Hungary. Albrecht Dürer Sr. translated the Hungarian surname Aitoshi (Hungarian ajto - “door”) into German as Türer, later it was transformed into Dürer. The future artist characterized his mother Barbara Holper as a pious woman who tried to punish her children often and diligently. 18 children were born into the Durer Family, but only 8 survived. Albrecht was the third child.

Studies

In 1477 Albrecht began attending a Latin school. In addition, the father taught his son jewelry making. Nevertheless, Albrecht decided to pursue painting. As a teenager, he painted his self-portrait (1484) and Madonna with Two Angels (1485). When Albrecht was 15 years old, he began studying with the Nuremberg artist M. Wolgemut. In his workshop, Dürer studied painting, as well as engraving on copper and wood. According to art historians, during this period he worked on some engravings for the “Book of Chronicles” by H. Schedel. In particular, over the engraving known as “Dance of Death”.

According to tradition, studies were supposed to end with a journey on which Dürer set off in 1490. Albrecht Durer's student trip lasted about 4 years. During this time he visited Switzerland, Germany and the Netherlands. In 1492, Dürer stayed in Alsace, where he worked for some time in Schongauer's workshop. He then moved to Basel. Here he participated in the creation of engravings for “The Ship of Fools” by S. Brant. Dürer spent some time in Strasbourg, where he created his “Self-Portrait with a Thistle” (1493). The last creation was a gift for Dürer's bride.

Engraver

1495 - Dürer opens his own workshop in Nuremberg, where he creates most their engravings. He tried many new techniques in engraving technique and opened the sale of the first prints

1498 - the book “Apocalypse” was published, for which Dürer made 15 woodcuts. The latter brought him wide fame.

1500 - the book “The Passion of St. Brigid." Dürer completed 30 engravings for her. During this period, he also joined the Nuremberg humanists, led by Konrad Zeltis.

1501 - Dürer engraves Roswitha's "Collection of Comedies and Poems" published by Celtis.

1504 - creates the engraving “Adam and Eve”, which is considered one of the masterpieces of metal engraving.

1507-1512 – produces a series of religious engravings “Little Passions”, “Great Passions” and “Life of Mary”.

1512 - Emperor Maximilian I became the main patron of the engraver. Dürer participates in the work on the Arc de Triomphe, a monumental woodcut that was commissioned by the emperor.

1513 - takes part in the illustration of the “Prayer Book of Emperor Maximilian”. In 1515, the emperor granted Albrecht Dürer a lifelong pension.

1513-1514 – creates 3 graphic sheets, which in the history of art are known as “Mastery Engravings”: “Saint Jerome in the Cell”, “Knight, Death and the Devil” and “Melancholy”. The latter engraving became famous due to the “magic square” depicted in its background.

1515 - completed 3 engravings depicting maps of the northern and southern hemispheres starry sky and the eastern hemisphere of the Earth.

1515-1518 - starts working in new technology- etching. Dürer's etchings were made on iron boards.

Dürer put a lot of effort into achieving mastery in engraving, considering it the right way to material well-being and recognition. He was the first German artist to simultaneously work in both types of engraving - honey and wood. The implementation of Dürer's engravings was carried out by his mother and wife. His engravings could often be found at fairs in Nuremberg, Augsburg and Frankfurt am Main. In addition to engravings, at the beginning of the 16th century, Durer worked on bookplates. On this moment There are 20 known bookplates created by him. Albrecht Dürer made the first bookplate for his friend Willibald Pirkheimer.

Painter

1494-1497 – created a portrait of the Saxon Elector Frederick III.

1498 - painted his self-portrait.

1499 - created a portrait sales agent O. Krel and his father.

1500 – completed the polyptych “Seven Sorrows” for the Elector of Saxony, Frederick III.

1504 - commissioned by the aforementioned Saxon elector, he painted the painting “The Adoration of the Magi.”

1505 - while in Venice, he completed the painting “Feast of Rose Wreaths” by order of German merchants. Dürer believed that it was this work that made many recognize him not only as an engraver, but as a painter.

1506 - Dürer returns to his native Nuremberg.

1509 – elected member Great Council Nuremberg.

1511 - commissioned by the merchant Matthias Landauer, he paints the altar “Adoration of the Holy Trinity.”

1518 - Dürer represents Nuremberg at the Reichstag in Augsburg. Here he paints portraits of Jacob Fugger, Maximilian I and others famous participants congress.

1526 - Dürer creates the diptych "The Four Apostles".

Personal life

In 1494, Dürer married at the behest of his father. Agnes Frey came from an old Nuremberg family. The young couple never saw each other until the wedding day. Although Dürer sent his self-portrait to the bride. The artist was not particularly enthusiastic about marriage, although he did not oppose his father’s will. After all, according to the rules of that time, only a married artist was considered a master. Immediately after the wedding, Dürer went to Italy to improve his skills. The couple had no children. According to Dürer, a real artist must protect himself from women: “not live with them, not see them, and not even touch them.”

Albrecht Dürer died on April 6, 1528 from liver disease. He was buried at the Nuremberg Johannesfriedhof cemetery near the grave of his friend W. Pirkheimer.

Albrecht Dürer (German Albrecht Dürer, May 21, 1471, Nuremberg - April 6, 1528, Nuremberg) - German painter and graphic artist, one of the greatest masters of the Western European Renaissance. Recognized as the largest European master of woodblock printing, who raised it to the level of real art. The first art theorist among the North European artists, author practical guide in fine and decorative arts at German, who promoted the need for the diversified development of artists. Founder of comparative anthropometry. The first European artist to write an autobiography.

Biography of Albrecht Durer

The future artist was born on May 21, 1471 in Nuremberg, in the family of jeweler Albrecht Dürer, who arrived in this German city from Hungary in the mid-15th century, and Barbara Holper. The Dürers had eighteen children, some, as Dürer the Younger himself wrote, died “in their youth, others when they grew up.” In 1524, only three of the Dürer children were alive - Albrecht, Hans and Endres.

The future artist was the third child and second son in the family. His father, Albrecht Dürer the Elder, literally translated his Hungarian surname Aitoshi (Hungarian Ajtósi, from the name of the village of Aitosh, from the word ajtó - “door.”) into German as Türer; subsequently it was transformed under the influence of Frankish pronunciation and began to be written Dürer. Albrecht Dürer the Younger remembered his mother as a pious woman who lived a difficult life. Perhaps weakened by frequent pregnancies, she was sick a lot. The famous German publisher Anton Koberger became Dürer's godfather.

For some time, the Durers rented half of the house (next to the city central market) from the lawyer and diplomat Johann Pirkheimer. Hence the close acquaintance of two families belonging to different urban classes: the patricians Pirkheimers and the artisans Durers. Dürer the Younger was friends with Johann's son, Willibald, one of the most enlightened people in Germany, all his life. Thanks to him, the artist later entered the circle of humanists in Nuremberg, whose leader was Pirkheimer, and became his own man there.

From 1477 Albrecht attended the Latin school. At first, the father involved his son in working in a jewelry workshop. However, Albrecht wanted to paint. The elder Dürer, despite regretting the time spent training his son, gave in to his requests, and at the age of 15, Albrecht was sent to the workshop of the leading Nuremberg artist of the time, Michael Wolgemut. Dürer himself spoke about this in his “Family Chronicle,” which he created at the end of his life, one of the first autobiographies in history. west European art.

From Wolgemut, Dürer mastered not only painting, but also wood engraving. Wolgemut, together with his stepson Wilhelm Pleydenwurf, made engravings for Hartmann Schedel's Book of Chronicles. In the work on the most illustrated book of the 15th century, which experts consider the Book of Chronicles, Wolgemut was helped by his students. One of the engravings for this edition, "Dance of Death", is attributed to Albrecht Dürer.

Altdorfer's work

Painting

Having dreamed of painting since childhood, Albrecht insisted that his father send him to study as an artist. After his first trip to Italy, he had not yet fully accepted the achievements Italian masters, but in his works one can already feel an artist who thinks outside the box and is always ready to search. Dürer probably received the title of master (and with it the right to open his own workshop) by completing murals in the “Greek style” in the house of Nuremberg citizen Sebald Schreyer. On young artist attracted the attention of Frederick the Wise, who instructed him, among other things, to paint his portrait. Following the Elector of Saxony, the Nuremberg patricians also wished to have their own images - at the turn of the century, Dürer worked a lot in portrait genre. Here Dürer continued the tradition that had developed in painting Northern Europe: The model is presented in a three-quarter spread against a landscape background, all details are depicted very carefully and realistically.

After the publication of “Apocalypse,” Dürer became famous in Europe as a master of engraving, and only during his second stay in Italy received recognition abroad as a painter. In 1505 Jacob Wimpfeling in his " German history"wrote that Dürer's paintings are valued in Italy "...as highly as the paintings of Parrhasius and Apelles." The works completed after his trip to Venice demonstrate Dürer’s success in solving problems of depicting the human body, including the nude, complex angles, and characters in motion. His characteristic disappears early works gothic angularity. The artist relied on the execution of ambitious painting projects, accepting orders for multi-figure altarpieces. The works of 1507-1511 are distinguished by a balanced composition, strict symmetry, “some rationality,” and a dry manner of depiction. Unlike his Venetian works, Dürer did not strive to convey the effects of a light-air environment; he worked with local colors, perhaps yielding to the conservative tastes of his clients. Accepted into service by Emperor Maximilian, he gained some financial independence and, leaving painting for a while, turned to scientific research and engraving works.

Self-portraits

The name of Dürer is associated with the formation of the Northern European self-portrait as independent genre. One of the best portrait painters of his time, he highly valued painting because it made it possible to preserve the image of a particular person for future generations. Biographers note that, having an attractive appearance, Dürer especially loved to portray himself in his youth and reproduced his appearance not without a “vain desire to please the viewer.” For Dürer, a picturesque self-portrait is a means of emphasizing his status and a milestone marking a certain stage of his life. Here he appears as a man of intellectual and spiritual development above the level that was determined by his class position, which was uncharacteristic for self-portraits of artists of that era. In addition, he once again asserted the high importance of fine art (unfairly, as he believed, excluded from among the “seven liberal arts") at a time when in Germany it was still considered a craft.

Drawings

About a thousand (Julia Bartrum says about 970) of Dürer’s drawings have survived: landscapes, portraits, sketches of people, animals and plants. Evidence of how carefully the artist treated his drawing is the fact that even his student works have been preserved. Dürer's graphic heritage, one of the largest in the history of European art, is on a par with the graphics of da Vinci and Rembrandt in terms of volume and significance. Free from the arbitrariness of the customer and his desire for the absolute, which brought a share of coldness into his paintings, the artist most fully revealed himself as a creator precisely in drawing.

Dürer tirelessly practiced arrangement, generalization of particulars, and construction of space. His animalistic and botanical drawings are distinguished by high craftsmanship execution, observation, fidelity to the transfer of natural forms, characteristic of a naturalist scientist. Most of them are carefully worked out and represent complete works; however, according to the custom of artists of that time, they served as auxiliary material: Dürer used all his studies in engravings and paintings, repeatedly repeating the motifs of graphic works in major works. At the same time, even G. Wölfflin noted that Dürer transferred almost nothing from the truly innovative discoveries he made in landscape watercolors to his paintings.

Dürer's graphics completed various materials, often he used them in combination. He became one of the first German artists, who worked with a brush with white on colored paper, popularizing this Italian tradition.

Bibliography

• Bartrum D. Durer / Trans. from English - M.: Niola-Press, 2010. - 96 p. - (From the collection British Museum). - 3000 copies. - ISBN 978-5-366-00421-3.
• Benoit A. History of painting of all times and peoples. - St. Petersburg: Publishing House"Neva", 2002. - T. 1. - P. 297-314. - 544 p. - ISBN 5-7654-1889-9.
• Berger J. Durer. - M.: Art-Rodnik, 2008. - 96 p. - 3000 copies. - ISBN 978-5-88896-097-4.
• Albrecht Durer. Engravings / Prev. A. Bore, approx. A. Bore and S. Bon, trans. from fr. A. Zolotov. - M.: Magma LLC, 2008. - 560 p. - 2000 copies. - ISBN 978-593428-054-4.
• Brion M. Durer. - M.: Young Guard, 2006. - (Life of wonderful people).
• Zuffi S. Large atlas of painting. Fine art 1000 years / Scientific editor S. I. Kozlova. - M.: OLMA-PRESS, 2002. - P. 106-107. - ISBN 5-224-03922-3.
• Durus A. The heretic Albrecht Durer and three “godless artists” // Art: magazine. - 1937. - No. 1.
• Zarnitsky S. Durer. - M.: Young Guard, 1984. - (Life of wonderful people).
• Nemirovsky E. The World of Books. From ancient times to the beginning of the 20th century / Reviewers A. A. Govorov, E. A. Dinerstein, V. G. Utkov. - M.: Book, 1986. - 50,000 copies.
• Lvov S. Albrecht Durer. - M.: Art, 1984. - (Life in art).
• Liebmann M. Durer and his era. - M.: Art, 1972.
• Koroleva A. Durer. - M.: Olma Press, 2007. - 128 p. - (Gallery of geniuses). - ISBN 5-373-00880-X.
• Matvievskaya G. Albrecht Durer - scientist. 1471-1528 / Rep. ed. Ph.D. physics and mathematics Science Yu. A. Bely; Reviewers: acad. Academy of Sciences of the UzSSR V. P. Shcheglov, Doctor of Physics and Mathematics. Sciences B.A.
• Rosenfeld; Academy of Sciences of the USSR. - M.: Nauka, 1987. - 240, p. - (Scientific and biographical literature). - 34,000 copies. (in translation)
• Nevezhina V. Nuremberg engravers of the 16th century. - M., 1929.
• Nesselstrauss Ts. Literary heritage Durer // Durer A. Treatises. Diaries. Letters / Translation by Nesselstrauss Ts.. - M.: Art, 1957. - T. 1.
• Nesselstrauss Ts. Drawings by Durer. - M.: Art, 1966. - 160 p. - 12,000 copies.
• Nesselstrauss Z. Durer. - M.: Art, 1961.
• Norbert W. Durer. - M.: Art-Rodnik, 2008. - 96 p. - 3000 copies. - ISBN 978-5-9794-0107-2.
• Sidorov A. Durer. - Izogiz, 1937.
• Chernienko I. Germany at the turn of the XV-XVI centuries: the era and its vision in the work of Albrecht Durer: abstract of the dissertation for competition academic degree candidate historical sciences: 07.00.03. - Perm, 2004.

Details Category: Fine arts and architecture of the Renaissance (Renaissance) Published 12/26/2016 17:45 Views: 2189

Albrecht Dürer is a multifaceted master, a true universal man, who is considered the “Leonardo da Vinci of the north.”

He distinguished himself in painting, drawing, engraving, bookplate, and stained glass. Dürer gained fame as a mathematician (primarily a geometer). He made three famous woodcuts depicting maps of the southern and northern hemispheres of the starry sky and the eastern hemisphere of the Earth. He created several treatises, which became the first works in northern Europe devoted to the theoretical systematization of knowledge about art. He created the work “Guide to Measuring with Compasses and Ruler,” intended primarily for artists. In the last years of his life, Albrecht Dürer paid a lot of attention to improving defensive fortifications, which was caused by the development of firearms.
In the field of printed graphics, Dürer also had no equal - he was recognized as a European-level master in the field of woodblock printing.
Albrecht Durer (1471-1528)- German painter and graphic artist, one of the greatest masters of the Northern Renaissance.

Albrecht Durer. Self-portrait (1500). Alte Pinakothek (Munich)

Early years and youth

A. Durer was born in Nuremberg in 1471 in the family of a jeweler from Hungary, Albrecht Durer. There were 18 children in the family. Albrecht Jr. was the third child and second son in the family.

A. Durer. Barbara Dürer, née Holper, the artist's mother. German National Museum(Nuremberg)

A. Durer. Albrecht Durer the Elder, the artist's father. Uffizi (Florence)

Initially, the Durers rented half of the house from the lawyer and diplomat Johann Pirkheimer. His son, Johann Willibald, became one of the most enlightened people in Germany; Dürer was his friend all his life.
Albrecht attended a Latin school. He was not interested in jewelry making; he chose painting. At the age of 15, Albrecht entered the studio of the famous Nuremberg artist of the time, Michael Wolgemut. There he also mastered wood engraving.

Trips

In 1490, Dürer began his travels, the purpose of which was to acquire skills from masters in Germany and other countries: Switzerland, the Netherlands. In Alsace, he mastered the technique of copper engraving from Ludwig Schongauer. In Basel he worked with Georg Schongauer to create a new style book illustrations. It is believed that here Dürer took part in the creation of the famous woodcuts for the “Ship of Fools” by Sebastian Brant.

Illustration by A. Durer

In Strasbourg, A. Dürer created his “Self-Portrait with a Thistle” (1493) and sent it to his hometown.

Perhaps this self-portrait marked the beginning of a new stage in personal life artist and was intended as a gift to his bride, because. in 1494 he returned to Nuremberg and soon married the daughter of his father's friend, a coppersmith, musician and mechanic, Agnes Frey.

A. Durer. Agnes Durer. Pen drawing (1494)

Increased with marriage social status Dürer - now he had the right to start his own business. But family life the artist was not happy due to the difference in characters and views of the spouses. They had no children.
In 1494 Dürer went to Italy. And in 1495 he opened his own workshop in Nuremberg and over the next 10 years he was engaged in engraving. Later he also engaged in copper engraving. Dürer created 15 woodcuts for the book Apocalypse. They brought him European fame. Illustrations were also created for other works, including those of ancient authors.
IN last decade XV century the artist created several picturesque portraits and a self-portrait.

A. Durer. Self-Portrait (1498). Prado Museum (Madrid)

In 1502, his father died, and Albrecht took care of his mother and his two younger brothers (Endres and Hans).
In 1505, Dürer went to Venice and stayed there for 2 years. He became acquainted with the work of the artists of the Venetian School, and this influenced his painting style. He was especially impressed by the paintings of Giovanni Bellini.
Next, the artist visited Bologna, Padua, and Rome.

Dürer House Museum

Returning to Nuremberg, Dürer bought a house in Zisselgasse, which is currently the Dürer House Museum.
Commissioned by the Nuremberg merchant Matthias Landauer, he painted the altarpiece “Adoration of the Holy Trinity.”

Landauer Altarpiece (1511). Kunsthistorisches Museum (Vienna)

But his main efforts were aimed at improving his engraving skills, and, from 1515, etching (a type of metal engraving).
Since 1512, Emperor Maximilian I became the artist’s main patron.

A. Durer “Portrait of Maximilian I”

Dürer begins to work on his orders: he performs the “Arch of Triumph”, and is engaged in a monumental woodcut (3.5 m x 3 m), made up of prints from 192 boards. A grandiose composition in honor of Maximilian was intended to decorate the wall. The model for it was the ancient Roman triumphal arches. In 1513, he, along with other artists, took part in the illustration (pen drawings) of one of the five copies of the “Prayer Book of Emperor Maximilian”.

Page from the Prayer Book

In 1520, the artist and his wife traveled to the Netherlands. Here he worked in the genre graphic portrait, met with local craftsmen and helped them work on a triumphal arch for the ceremonial entry of Emperor Charles. In the Netherlands, Durer famous artist, was a welcome guest everywhere. The magistrate of Antwerp even wanted to keep him in the city, offering an annual allowance of 300 guilders, a house as a gift, support, and payment of all his taxes. But in 1521 the Durers returned to Nuremberg.

last years of life

In the last years of his life, Dürer worked a lot as a painter. One of the most important paintings recent years- the diptych “The Four Apostles”, which he presented to the city council in 1526. This was his last work. While still in the Netherlands, Dürer fell ill with an unknown disease - perhaps it was malaria. He suffered from attacks of this disease for the rest of his life. Before last days Dürer was preparing his theoretical treatise on proportions for publication. Albrecht Dürer died on April 6, 1528 in his native Nuremberg.

The artistic work of Albrecht Durer

Painting

Dürer dreamed of painting since childhood. His paintings are distinguished by unconventional thought and constant search for means of expression.
While in Venice, the artist created the painting “Christ among the Teachers” (1506).

Board, oil. 65x80 cm. Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum (Madrid)

In this painting, Dürer depicted a story from the Gospel, which tells how Joseph, Mary and 12-year-old Jesus arrived in Jerusalem to celebrate Easter. When the time came to return home, Jesus remained in Jerusalem. For three days, worried parents searched for him and finally found him in the Jerusalem temple, disputing with learned sages: “After three days they found Him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions; all who heard Him were amazed at His understanding and His answers.”
The artist refuses detail and, depicting close-up the faces of the wise men and Christ, makes you feel the “tension of the dispute.” In the center of the composition are the hands of Jesus, counting his arguments in a conversation, and the hands of one of the teachers, indicating “nervousness and embarrassment.” This sage has a striking caricatured appearance, which has given rise to multiple interpretations. There is an assumption that Dürer illustrated the theory of four temperaments underlying human characters.
He created many altar images.

Heller Altarpiece (1507-1511)

“Geller Altarpiece” (“Altarpiece of the Assumption of Mary”) is an altar image in the form of a triptych Albrecht Dürer created together with Matthias Grunewald, commissioned by the patrician Jacob Geller for the church of the Dominican monastery in Frankfurt am Main. Part of it was preserved only in a copy made in the 16th century. artist Jobst Harrich.

Albrecht Durer "The Four Apostles" (1526). Oil. 215x76 cm. Alte Pinakothek (Munich)

The painting (diptych) consists of two vertical narrow doors, fastened together. The left wing depicts the apostles John and Peter, and the right – Mark and Paul. The apostles are in the same space, standing on the same floor. Compositionally and spiritually they are united. Dürer creates artistic example human characters and minds, directed into the high spheres of the spirit - this is the master’s idea of ​​the kind of person he should be.
Dürer gave the painting to his native Nuremberg; it was located in the hall of the town hall, where the most important matters of city government were decided. Maximilian I demanded that the painting be sent to Munich.
In adulthood, Dürer worked a lot on portraits and continued the tradition that had developed in the painting of Northern Europe: the model was depicted in a three-quarter spread against the background of a landscape, all the details were worked out very carefully and realistically.
The emergence of the Northern European self-portrait as an independent genre is associated with the name of Dürer.

Drawings by Albrecht Durer

Dürer revealed himself most as an artist in drawing, because... his paintings mainly depended on the arbitrariness of his customers, but in drawing he was free.
About a thousand of Dürer's drawings have survived, including his student works. The artist’s drawings depict landscapes, portraits, sketches of people, animals and plants. Animalistic and botanical drawings are marked by observation and faithfulness to the representation of the natural forms of the image object.

A. Durer "Hare". Paper, watercolor, gouache, whitewash. 25.1x22.6 cm. Albertina Gallery (Vienna)

Graphics by Albrecht Durer

After the publication of Apocalypse, Dürer became famous in Europe as a master of engraving.
Albrecht Dürer created 374 woodcuts and 83 copper engravings. Printed graphics became his main means of earning money. In addition to traditional biblical and new ancient ones, Dürer also developed everyday subjects in engraving.
Durer's engraving "Adam and Eve" (1504) is read as a masterpiece of engraving on metal.

A. Durer “Adam and Eve” (1504)

In 1513-1514. Dürer created three graphic sheets, masterpieces of engraving, included in the history of art under the name “Mastery Engravings”: “Knight, Death and the Devil”, “Saint Jerome in the Cell” and “Melancholy”.

A. Durer "Melancholy". Copper, chisel engraving. 23.9x18.8 cm. State Hermitage Museum(St. Petersburg)

“Melancholy” is considered one of Durer’s most mysterious works; it stands out for the complexity and non-obviousness of the idea, the brightness of the symbols and allegories.

Bookplates by Albrecht Durer

Bookplate– a book sign identifying the owner of a book. The bookplate is pasted or stamped on the left endpaper of the book.
In total, 20 bookplates by Dürer are known, of which 7 are in the project and 13 are ready. Dürer made his first bookplate for his friend, writer and bibliophile Willibald Pirkheimer. The artist completed his own bookplate with the Dürer coat of arms in 1523. The image of an open door on the shield indicates the surname “Dürer.” The man's eagle wings and black skin are symbols of South German heraldry; they were also used by the Nuremberg family of Dürer's mother.

Coat of arms of Albrecht Durer (1523)

Dürer was the first artist to create and use his coat of arms and the famous monogram ( capital letter A and D inscribed in it), later he had many imitators.

Dürer monogram

Stained glass by Albrecht Durer

It is not known whether Dürer personally took part in glass works, but many of them were created based on his sketches.

"Moses Receiving the Ten Commandments." Stained glass window based on a drawing by Albrecht Durer for the Church of St. Jacob's in Straubing (1500)

Albrecht Durer was a famous mathematician (geometer), compiled magic square: arranged the numbers from 1 to 16 so that the sum 34 is obtained not only when adding them vertically, horizontally and diagonally, but also in all four quarters, in the central quadrangle and even when adding numbers from four corner cells. The sum of any pair of numbers symmetrically located relative to the center of the square is 17.

Durer's magic square (fragment of his engraving "Melancholy")

German painter, draftsman and engraver, one of the greatest masters of Western European art. Dürer was an astute explorer of nature and an ardent supporter of the Italian (Renaissance) theory of art, but his work exhibited many features of medieval mysticism. Dürer spoke enthusiastically about his life, perhaps motivated by vanity; he described various aspects of it in a family chronicle, in a diary dedicated to a trip to the Netherlands, and in several personal letters.

Self-portraits of Dürer, even more than his own words, show a constant desire for self-knowledge and the formation of their own personality. The artist created his first self-portrait at the age of thirteen. In this silver pencil drawing he appears as a thin, sensitive young man. In the same vein, Dürer depicted himself in a very intimate Self-Portrait with a Carnation (1493, Louvre). Here he is twenty-two years old. The graceful and sinuous contours of his smart clothes are echoed wavy lines long blonde hair. In the Madrid Self-Portrait (1498, Prado), Dürer appears as a successful man. His hands rest on the parapet, the view from the window opens behind him. Here he is already shown with a beard, dressed in the dress of a rich burgher. This portrait reflects the Renaissance approach to the interpretation of the personality of the artist, who from now on should be considered not as a humble artisan, but as a person with a high intellectual and professional status. In 1500 these trends culminate in the Self-Portrait as Christ (Munich, Alte Pinakothek). Here the master’s narcissism, noticeable in his earlier self-portraits, is replaced by sober directness. The figure is strictly frontal, the eyes attract attention, the tones of carnation are complemented by various shades of brown, the background is dark. In this work, Durer obviously sought to convey the idea that the artist, like God, is a creator.

Dürer was born on May 21, 1471 in Nuremberg, the main center of German humanism. His artistic talent business qualities and worldview were formed under the influence of three people who played the most important role in his life: his father, a Hungarian jeweler; godfather Koberger, who left Jewelry Art and went into publishing; And closest friend Durer, Wilibald Pirckheimer - an outstanding humanist who introduced the young artist to new Renaissance ideas and works of Italian masters.

Dürer mastered the basics of painting and woodcut printing in the workshop of the artist Michael Wolgemut. After several years of study, he went to Colmar in 1490 to meet the great engraver Martin Schongauer, but did not find him alive. He spent 1492–1494 in Basel, the largest center for the production of illustrated books. Here the young artist became interested in woodcuts and copper engraving; However, of the numerous engravings attributed to this period of Dürer's work, only the frontispiece to the publication of the letters of St. can be considered his work. Jerome 1492.

In 1494, after visiting Strasbourg, Dürer returned to his homeland, but soon went to Venice. Along the way, the master completed several remarkable watercolor landscapes, which are among the first works of this genre in Western European art.

Returning to Nuremberg in 1495, the artist opened his own workshop and began making drawings, from which his students made woodcuts. Printing a significant number of prints, from 1497 Dürer began to resort to the services of agents who sold his engravings throughout Europe. Thus, he became not only an artist, but also a publisher; his fame was strengthened by the publication in 1498 of a series of woodcuts of the Apocalypse. In the engraving The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, horses fly over the bodies of fallen people. Emotional intensity is achieved through the juxtaposition of dark, dense parallel shading, large patches of pure white paper and places where shapes are barely indicated by thin lines; This creates an amazing sculptural effect. At this time, the fame of Dürer, who had been patronized by the Elector of Saxony, Frederick, since 1496, spread throughout Europe.

In 1503–1504 Dürer created wonderful watercolor sketches animals and plants, of which the most famous is the Large Piece of Turf (1503, Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum). Written various shades green, the plants are depicted with unrivaled care and precision.

The engraving of Adam and Eve, executed in 1504, is distinguished by its monumentality and classicizing tendencies. Both figures are the result of research into proportions human body, which occupied Dürer throughout his life. Now the artist turned to metal engraving, which made it possible to operate with thinner and more flexible lines than those that could be obtained using the woodcut technique.

Returning to Nuremberg, Dürer continued to engage in engraving, but paintings occupied a more important place among his works of 1507–1511. Dürer, apparently, was not attracted to the technique of sfumato (hazy softness of outlines in painting), which became widespread in these years, and he continued to paint in a rigid linear style. This period is characterized by such paintings as Adam and Eve (1507, Prado). Flexible bodies of elongated proportions with weakly expressed signs of gender, placed on a dark background, are more graceful than Adam and Eve in the engraving of 1504. In 1508, Dürer painted for the Dominican Church in Frankfurt big image Dormition of the Mother of God (not preserved and known only from copies). His composition reflected the influence of Italian two-tiered images of the Ascension of the Mother of God. Thanks to the use of this scheme, the master managed to achieve a striking monumentality of the image. In 1511, by order of the merchant Matthaus Landauer, Dürer painted the Adoration of the Trinity (Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum). This is the most ambitious of all the artist’s works. The Trinity is depicted on the central axis (the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove, God the Father crowned with a crown, and the crucified Christ); around are the saints worshiping the Divine Throne, forming four groups: at the top left are the martyrs led by the Mother of God; on the right are prophets, prophetesses and sibyls led by John the Baptist; below on the left are church leaders led by two popes, and on the right are laypeople led by the emperor and king. At the very bottom there is a landscape with a lake, on the shore of which a lonely figure of Dürer himself is shown at a board with an inscription. The painting is hard and dry, the sparkling colors seem almost metallic, the hard and dense forms contrast with the softness of the landscape and clouds.

If in 1507–1511 Dürer was mainly engaged in painting, then the years 1511–1514 were devoted mainly to engraving. He published the second edition of the Apocalypse, a cycle of twenty woodcuts of the Life of Mary, twelve engravings of the Great Passion series and thirty-seven engravings on the same subject - the Lesser Passion. During this period, his style becomes more confident, the contrasts of light and shadow are stronger, as, for example, in the engravings The Taking of Christ into Custody (Great Passion series) and the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. In 1512, Dürer released the third series of engravings of the Passion, exquisite and refined in execution. In 1513–1514 he created his three most famous sheets: Knight, Death and Devil; St. Jerome in the Cell and Melancholia I. In the first of these, a Christian knight rides through mountainous terrain, accompanied by Death with an hourglass and the devil. The image of the knight arose, perhaps, under the influence of the treatise of Erasmus of Rotterdam, Guide to the Christian Warrior (1504). Knight - allegory active life; he accomplishes his feats in the fight against death. The leaf of St. Jerome in the Cell, on the contrary, is an allegorical depiction of the contemplative lifestyle. The old man sits at the music stand in the back of the cell; a lion stretches out in the foreground. Light pours through the windows into this peaceful, cozy home, but symbols reminiscent of death also invade here: a skull and hourglass. The engraving of Melancholy I depicts a winged female figure sitting among disorganized devices and tools.

In 1514, Dürer became the court artist of Emperor Maximilian I. Together with his assistants, he created an engraving (3-3.5 m) that depicts triumphal arch and a solemn procession. The composition was intended to glorify the history of the imperial dynasty and the exploits of the emperor and his ancestors. Dürer continued to paint, creating a wonderful Portrait of Emperor Maximilian (Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum) and the image of the Virgin and Child and St. Anna (1519–1520, Metropolitan). The latter is a composition consisting of three tightly grouped figures. St. Anna, thoughtfully, placed her hand on the shoulder of the young Mother of God, worshiping the Infant Christ.

In 1519 Maximilian died, and the throne passed to Charles V. In 1520 Dürer went to the court of the new emperor. The trip turned into a long journey through the Netherlands, described in detail by Dürer in his travel diary. The artist was greeted with honors everywhere; along the way he saw the most various works art, from Van Eyck's Ghent Altarpiece to examples of art American Indians, brought from Mexico by Cortez's companions. Returning to Germany, he began a theoretical understanding of his observations and wrote treatises on the proportions of the human body and perspective - problems that had occupied him since his first trip to Italy.

The question about Dürer's religious ideas remains unanswered. In the subjects of his paintings one can find both Catholic and Protestant shades. He sympathized with Luther, whom, however, he was not familiar. In 1526 Dürer created a Portrait of Erasmus of Rotterdam (copper engraving), whose moderate religious views, apparently coincided with his own. The Four Apostles diptych (1526, Munich, Alte Pinakothek) was donated by Dürer to the Nuremberg city council. Perhaps the four full-length figures of the apostles were painted under the influence of the images of the altar by Giovanni Bellini from the Venetian Church of Frari (1488). On the left wing, John the Theologian, so beloved by Luther, is placed in front of Peter, the stone of affirmation of Catholicism; on the right wing, Paul, the apostle of the Reformation, stands in front of Mark. Perhaps this work was created specifically for the newly Protestant city; however, the inscription below can also be regarded as a warning against any manifestation of religious fanaticism.

Albrecht Durer was born in large family jeweler, he had seventeen brothers and sisters. In the 15th century, the profession of a goldsmith was considered very respectful, so the father tried to teach his children the craft in which he practiced. But Albrecht's talent for art manifested itself quite early age, and his father did not dissuade him; on the contrary, at the age of 15 he sent his son to the famous Nuremberg master Michael Wolgemut. After 4 years of studying with the master, Dürer went to travel and at the same time painted his first independent painting, “Portrait of the Father.” During the trip, he honed his skills with different masters V different cities. Let's consider the most famous paintings of Albrecht Durer, recognized by the international community.

This painting by Dürer caused a lot of condemnation, both among the artist’s contemporaries and modern critics painting. It's all about the pose in which the author drew himself and the hidden message conveyed through the details. At the time of the artist, only saints could be painted in frontal view or close to it. The holly in the artist’s hand is a reference to the crown of thorns, which was placed on the head of Christ at the crucifixion. The inscription at the top of the canvas reads “My affairs are determined from above,” this is a reference to the author’s devotion to God, and that all his achievements at this stage of life are with the blessing of God. This picture, stored in the Louvre, is assessed as having made certain changes in the human worldview.

With age, Dürer went even further in reflecting his experiences on canvas. For this impudence, his contemporaries harshly criticized the artist. On this canvas he painted his self-portrait from the front. Whereas even more recognized contemporaries could not afford such audacity. In the portrait, the author looks strictly ahead and holds his hand in the middle of his chest, which is typical for reflections of Christ. Ill-wishers found all the similarities in Durer’s painting and reproached him for comparing himself with Christ. Looking at the picture, some may agree with the critics, while others may see something more. There are no objects that attract attention in the picture, which forces the viewer to focus on the image of a person. Those who have seen the picture consider the range of feelings on the face and image of the person depicted.

The portrait, painted in 1505, is considered a Venetian-inspired work by Dürer. It was during this period that he stayed in Venice for the second time and honed his skills with Giovanni Bellini, with whom he eventually became friends. It is not known who is depicted in the portrait; some suggest that it is a Venetian courtesan. Since there is no information about the artist’s marriage, there are no other versions about the person who posed. The painting is kept at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.

The painting was commissioned by Dürer's patron for the Church of All Saints in Wittenberg. Because of the presence in the church of the relics of some of the ten thousand martyrs. The religious story familiar to many believers, about the beating of Christian soldiers on Mount Ararat, is reflected in every detail. In the center of the composition, the author drew himself with a flag on which he wrote the time of writing and the author of the painting. Next to him is painted Dürer’s friend, the humanist Konrad Celtis, who died before the painting was completed.

Durer's most recognizable painting was painted for the Church of San Bartolomeo in Italy. The artist painted this picture for several years. The picture is saturated bright colors, since such a trend was becoming popular at that time. The painting is named so because of the subject reflected in it, Dominican monks who used rosaries in their prayers. In the center of the picture is the Virgin Mary with the baby Christ in her arms. Surrounded by worshippers, including Pope Julian the Second and Emperor Maximilian the First. Child - Jesus distributes wreaths of roses to everyone. Dominican monks used rosaries of strictly white and red colors. White symbolizes the joy of the Virgin Mary, red the blood of Christ at the crucifixion.

Another very famous painting by Durer was copied many times, printed on postcards, stamps and even coins. The history of the painting is striking in its symbolism. The canvas depicts not just the hand of a pious man, but sibling Durer. Even in childhood, the brothers agreed to take turns painting, since fame and wealth from this craft do not come immediately and not to everyone, one of the brothers had to ensure the existence of the other. Albrecht was the first to take up painting, and when it was his brother’s turn, his hands had already become unaccustomed to painting, he could not paint. But Albrecht's brother was a pious and humble man, he was not upset with his brother. These hands are reflected in the picture.

Dürer depicted his patron several times on different paintings, but the portrait of Maximilian the First became one of the world-famous paintings. The emperor is depicted, as befits monarchs, with rich robes, an arrogant look, and the picture reeks of arrogance. As in other paintings of the artist, there is a peculiar symbol. The Emperor holds in his hand a pomegranate, a symbol of abundance and immortality. A hint that it is he who provides the people with prosperity and fertility. The grains visible on a peeled piece of pomegranate are a symbol of the versatility of the emperor’s personality.

This engraving by Durer symbolizes a person's path through life. A knight dressed in armor is a man protected by his faith from temptation. Death walking nearby is depicted with an hourglass in his hands, indicating the outcome at the end of the allotted time. The devil walks behind the knight, depicted as some kind of pitiful creature, but ready to attack him at the slightest opportunity. It all comes down to the eternal struggle between good and evil, strength of spirit in the face of temptation.

Durer's most famous engraving of his 15 works on the theme of the Biblical apocalypse. The four horsemen are Victory, War, Famine and Death. The hell that follows them is depicted in the engraving in the form of a beast with open mouth. As in the legend, the horsemen rush, sweeping away everyone in their path, both poor and rich, kings and ordinary people. A reference to the fact that everyone will receive what they deserve, and everyone will answer for their sins.

The painting was painted during Dürer's return from Italy. The picture intertwines German attention to detail and colorfulness, the brightness of colors characteristic Italian Renaissance. The attention to lines, mechanical subtleties and details makes reference to the sketches of Leonardo Da Vinci. In this world-famous painting, the scene described in sufficient detail in Biblical tales, transferred in paint to canvas, leaves the impression that this is exactly how it happened.