id: 130154
accession number: 1952.533
share license status: CC0
url: https://clevelandart.org/art/1952.533
updated:
The Lovers Surprised by Death, 1510. Hans Burgkmair (German, 1473–1531). Chiaroscuro woodcut; The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund 1952.533
title: The Lovers Surprised by Death
title in original language:
series:
series in original language:
creation date: 1510
creation date earliest: 1510
creation date latest: 1510
current location:
creditline: John L. Severance Fund
copyright:
---
culture: Germany, 16th century
technique: chiaroscuro woodcut
department: Prints
collection: PR - Chiaroscuro
type: Print
find spot:
catalogue raisonne: Hollstein V.124.724
---
CREATORS
* Hans Burgkmair (German, 1473–1531) - artist
---
measurements:
state of the work: III/IV
edition of the work:
support materials:
inscriptions:
---
CURRENT EXHIBITIONS
title: Death, Love, and the Maiden
opening date: 1975-03-13T04:00:00
Death, Love, and the Maiden. University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA (organizer) (March 13-April 20, 1975).
title: Printing in Color
opening date: 1985-09-10T04:00:00
Printing in Color. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 10-November 17, 1985).
title: Albrecht Dürer and His Influence
opening date: 1991-01-16T05:00:00
Albrecht Dürer and His Influence. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 16-March 10, 1991).
title: Against the Grain: Woodcuts from the Collection
opening date: 2003-08-17T00:00:00
Against the Grain: Woodcuts from the Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 17-November 9, 2003).
---
LEGACY EXHIBITIONS
---
PROVENANCE
---
fun fact:
digital description:
wall description:
This is the earliest known chiaroscuro woodcut to be composed of a line block and two tone blocks rather than just one tone block. However, unlike the majority of German chiaroscuro woodcuts, the line block alone does not provide a coherent image. All three of the blocks must be printed for the design to be complete. The subject is a remarkably effective combination of a typically Northern subject—a grim representation of Death—and an evocative Italian setting. The classical architecture, the gondola on a canal, and the distinctively wide chimney pots indicate Venice, where Burgkmair would have stayed during his presumed journey to Italy in 1507. The figure of Death is winged, as in Italian art of the period, and the classical costumes and pose of the terrified woman resemble antique representations of Daphne fleeing Apollo, a reflection of what interested Burgkmair's patrons, the educated elite in Augsburg.
---
RELATED WORKS
---
CITATIONS
---
IMAGES
web: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1952.533/1952.533_web.jpg
print: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1952.533/1952.533_print.jpg
full: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1952.533/1952.533_full.tif