PDF Kandinsky (German Edition) by Mikhail Guerman in Arts-Photography

Description

Duuml;rer is the greatest of German artists and most representative of the German mind. He; like Leonardo; was a man of striking physical attractiveness; great charm of manner and conversation; and mental accomplishment; being well grounded in the sciences and mathematics of the day. His skill in draughtsmanship was extraordinary; Duuml;rer is even more celebrated for his engravings on wood and copper than for his paintings. With both; the skill of his hand was at the service of the most minute observation and analytical research into the character and structure of form. Duuml;rer; however; had not the feeling for abstract beauty and ideal grace that Leonardo possessed; but instead; a profound earnestness; a closer interest in humanity; and a more dramatic invention. Duuml;rer was a great admirer of Luther; and in his own work is the equivalent of what was mighty in the Reformer. It is very serious and sincere; very human; and addressed the hearts and understanding of the masses. Nuremberg; his hometown; had become a great centre of printing and the chief distributor of books throughout Europe. Consequently; the art of engraving upon wood and copper; which may be called the pictorial branch of printing; was much encouraged. Of this opportunity Duuml;rer took full advantage. The Renaissance in Germany was more a moral and intellectual than an artistic movement; partly due to northern conditions. The feeling for ideal grace and beauty is fostered by the study of the human form; and this had been flourishing predominantly in southern Europe. But Albrecht Duuml;rer had a genius too powerful to be conquered. He remained profoundly Germanic in his stormy penchant for drama; as was his contemporary Mathias Gruuml;newald; a fantastic visionary and rebel against all Italian seductions. Duuml;rer; in spite of all his tense energy; dominated conflicting passions by a sovereign and speculative intelligence comparable with that of Leonardo. He; too; was on the border of two worlds; that of the Gothic age and that of the modern age; and on the border of two arts; being an engraver and draughtsman rather than a painter.