To what extent does the Italian renaissance spirit reflect itself in the art of Albrecht Durer?

Albrecht Durer was a Northern European artist, who changed the stylistic context of
European art at the time of the renaissance. Italy was known for the birth of the renaissance and
baroque style. Other parts of Europe, for other styles. Germany and its iconographic importance
brought on a manner that eventually became an international force. The Germanic innovations
consisted of the graphic arts and their isolated images of devotion. Albrecht Durer was the driving
force behind the dominance of the graphic arts in Germany because of his infamous engravings and
woodcut designs. This “graphic perfection” was attained for more than a century i.

It is apparent that the German artist, was influenced by the Italian renaissance and what was
happening in Italy. His trips had accounted for this inspiration, notably, because of his inclination
towards Italy’s classical heritage and his fantastic use of venetian colour. This can be seen in the
Feast of the Rose Garlands altarpiece. An artist interested in humanism and calculated perspective,
Durer encompassed the notion of humanism in his hometown of Nuremberg, which soon after
became a fundamental part of protestant reformation art. Durer’s prestige as an artist in German
society and in Italy, indicated his successful workflow, from being a court artist to Holy Roman
Emperors to making countless commissions. The artist’s Manual of Geometric theory involved
several written books that eluded a primary scientific treatment on his theory of perspective. A
significant cause and affect that suggests an interrelationship to that of the Italian Renaissance ii.

In Northern Europe, art formerly had a dislike towards the term “theorizing.” This is especially ironic
when it comes to Durer’s contradictory technique in terms of rendering the human figure. Although
Durer had admitted to the production of art as to involve the imagination, without “Kunst” meaning
knowledge, he believed that the principle of any creation of art would be insufficient. Durer had
claimed a lack of, when it came to works of art from his native artists. Instead, he leaned towards a
rationalization that was uniquely Italian. Through a method of his own, Durer developed a
mechanical execution seen in his etchings were,

Space seems to dissolve into a welter of unearthly shapes iii.

One would imagine that Durer’s contact with great masters and thinkers of that period would
stimulate his genius. Artists like Raphael, Lorenzo di Credi, Barbari, Bellini and Alberti and Leonardo
da Vinci, must have left a conscious mark on the Germanic artist’s oeuvre. His artistic technique
involved a consistency throughout three phases with his trip to Italy in 1505, depicted as the first
phase of his earlier works. Durer’s interest in visiting Italy was mainly because of the revival of
classical antiquity in the country. Before his visit, no Northern artist had considered the renaissance
style of the Quattrocento. His visit was a journey that resulted in the birth of the Renaissance in the
Northern countries. The ten years that followed his first trip concluded extensive productivity in
which he produced over sixty woodcuts and engravings, known to have caused immediate,
international attention. His second trip in 1505, upon arriving in Venice, he had received a
commission which was to execute an altarpiece for the German colony of Our Lady in the national
church in S. Bartolommeo. During Durer’s stay, he involved himself in the study of art theory and
continued to work on his paintings and upon his return to Nuremberg. Afterwards, Durer extensively
started to study the subjects of languages and mathematics and it was not until he became court
artist for the Emperor Maximilian I, that he felt the need to travel again. The emperor’s death
brought Durer to seek for Maximilian’s successor, who was temporarily residing in the Netherlands.
iv
Durer had once again, come home “intellectually refreshed.” Durer had died seven years later,
leaving behind him an abundance of works; from drawings, engravings, and paintings, to printed
books that revolve around the study of geometrical and theoretical aspects of the human figure.

According to his Italian contemporaries, Durer lacked anachronisms in settings, costume, and colour
within his works. They denoted a miss of “classical” spirit but encouraged his technical skills and
innovations when it came to woodcuts and his engravings. For others, such as those from Bologna,
Durer’s work elaborated more “contributions” than that of Raphael and Michelangelo, to the
renaissance period.

As a goldsmith, Durer had encompassed the knowledge of a craftsman with the help of his father.
The work involved incising decorations onto metal objects. It may have well been the starting point
of his interest in engravings. In 1486, he became the apprentice of Michael Wolgemut, a German
painter and printer. Wolgemut’s shop was known to combine illustrative woodcuts with books. The
works that Durer had produced in Italy, are those illustrated in the last book of the New Testament.
Some of these are The Revelations of Saint John the Divine and The Apocalypse. The Apocalypse
represents the first ever illustrative book made by an artist. Other works produced at this time, show
Durer’s scientific, human proportions, that were based on Vitruvius’s works, a Roman writer. These
works are The Fall of Man, Saint Eustace, and Large Fortune. Despite having worked on these master
pieces, Durer had come to the realization of a new style in Nuremberg. Not to be forgotten that
during this time Germany was only interested in the revival of antiquity through literary or scholastic
means. On the other hand, Italy embraced these means visually. v

What makes works like The Apocalypse so distinctive, in terms of an advanced, wood-cut style, is
because of its adopted classical qualities in relation to the “nackete Bilder.” This was the exposure of
a true, emotional energy within pictorial composition. Woodcuts that were being made in Germany,
had their compositions created with contours, to exclude the “characterization” of light, shade, or
texture, which lacked any emotional suggestion as whole. Durer has already been defying this
technique before his trips to Italy. He practiced techniques in which the visuals of his woodcuts could
be appreciated for their graphic qualities inclusive of expressing organic structure. In The
Apocalypse, Durer’s new woodcut technique is evident. However, inspired by Schonegauer’s
engravings, for example in the work of Seven Candlesticks, one can observe a varied modernization.
The naked soles of the Evangelist are shown to the viewer. Durer repeats this realistic detail in other,
later works, such as in the Heller Altarpiece, in two woodcuts that show the Death and the
Assumption of the Virgin and in The Last Judgment. However, noticing resemblances to the work of
the Alsatian engraver Schongenauer, if one looks at the woodcut that makes part of the series of The
Apocalypse, that of Opening of the Fifth and Sixth Seals, the context shows the mother figure
seeming to resemble a woman in the Italian painter, Mantegna’s Deposition of Christ. There is a
relationship between the shocked, mother’s face in Durer’s woodcut with that of the old woman
mourning in Mantegna’s work. vi

While there are these details, the Italian Renaissance was taken by Durer, mostly as a method
approach. These classical notions were passed on from Mantegna and his followers to Durer. In The
Apocalypse, compositional measures put focus on the plane surface. In Avenging Angels, angels
were added to evoke a sense of symmetry. The naturalism element in Durer’s works had continued
to trudge on and as an addition, a scientific study of the human body and human emotions were
employed. Laws of nature for Durer were mostly essential components for biblical text. Due to the
realistic detail on these visions, the pictorial effect becomes convincing. Avenging Angels depicts
angels who hold the winds, the visual stress on humans in pain and an anger associated to the Four
Horsemen. Recalling back the Vision of the Seven Candlesticks, one can see relations to Gruninger
Bibles, yet the measurement of perceptual depth and the overall realism, is an addition. Every object
and figure added to this woodcut has been put into perspective; with the candlesticks almost
magnified to catch the viewer’s eye. The candlesticks and the stars signify the seven congregations
of the Revelation, and the meaning of the work evokes God’s power.

Another work of Durer that calls for Italian influences is that of the Virgin with the Monkey, 1498.
The monkey is dependently signifying the Synagogue. In this work, Durer had started to become
more aware of factors such as space, texture, and volume. The figures and the background are
detached from each other, and the shapes of the trees are well-defined through his use of lines.
There is Mary and Child, which sources have confirmed, is inspiration from Leonardo da Vinci, who
had influenced Lorzeno di Credi. The naturalistic details consist of the coat of the monkey, the sleeve
of Mary, the material of the bench and the clouds that contrast with the night-time sky. The
movement of the drapery was produced with “parallel curves,” that complement one another. There
are indicative curves that form Mary’s knee and an observation that must be mentioned in general,
is the detail of the rendering of the female breast, where previously Durer did not apply any
geometrical renditions. vii

Another work of Durer which deserves attention is that of the Small Horse. He drew horses in many
of his compositions. It is a horse positioned in profile which is situated next to a barrel vault. A knight
is also within the print, positioned at the depth of the print. The horse takes up the centre plane
where some areas of its body are shaded. This defines its muscularity. The proportions insinuate that
it is a small horse because, in height it is parallel with that of the barrelled vault. One notices a
hesitance in the small horse, as his hoof is raising almost as if he is whinnying. The vase, which is
positioned above the head of the knight, may be linked to Renaissance symbolism. The horse in such
stories is known as “violent” and the vase is connected to “illuminating reason.” Although a
hypothesis, what is known for sure is that the horse is of Italian origins. It is a copy of a
“Leonardesque” work which was transmitted from two recorded drawings by Durer, with slight
alterations. viii

One of the most important works of Durer of the year of 1504, is that of The Adoration of the Magi.
It is a mixture of Northern figures and classical elements. In Northern countries, clothing was a
prominent characteristic to their paintings. It is also seen in this work. The composition is made up of
Durer’s input of embroidery and elements of craftsmanship. A variety of textures can be observed,
from wood to stone, or hair to fur. These textures separate the Virgin and Child from the Wise Men
and to that of their desolate surroundings. The figures are constructed in distinctive positions, with
some rendering of a purely Italian nature. When the work was created, Durer’s first trip to Italy had
already happened. In the work, the King is kneeling with his body language facing towards the Child.
This was typical of the Leonardesque style. Details such as the animals and plants or the Virgin’s veil,
typically represent a Flemish liking. If one speaks about the use of colour, Durer employed red,
green, and blue in the foreground with the background opening into a landscape, depicting people
knights and villagers in the depths of the work. The perspective is planned to have ultimate focus on
the important figures, the Magi and the Madonna and Child. ix

Durer’s second trip to Italy was more of a focal point regarding his studies in relation to theory.
Nevertheless, it gave strength to Durer’s “coloristic” and “luminaristic” perception. This practice was
mostly put to large-scale figure drawings. A change in his perspective of beauty in later works had
resulted in the use the Gothic style. It might be interpreted that he was returning to older styles, but
the fact of the matter is that this Gothic execution had much to do with Venetian practices. The style
was used in works such as the Adam and Eve, 1507, which involved elongated, human proportions
with an attention to produce unity. The Assumption and the Coronation of the Virgin was also
contributed to a Venetian style; that can be put to resemble Raphael’s works. Nevertheless, his
Northern traditions would seep through every time which is what made him such a distinctive and
unique artist.

Durer was also responsible for presenting the Northern countries with geometrical constructions of
Roman lettering. All this being said, the strong connection that Durer had to the Italian Renaissance
and these methods was so important because it had eventually impacted various artists including
those situated in Italy; most notably Raphael, Titian and Parmigiano.
i
Wisse, J., 2021. [online] Metmuseum.org. Available at:
<https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/durr/hd_durr.htm> [Accessed 11 June 2021]..

ii
Wisse, J., 2021. [online] Metmuseum.org. Available at:
<https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/durr/hd_durr.htm> [Accessed 11 June 2021].

iii
Panofsky, E. and Smith, J., 2005. The life and art of Albrecht Dürer. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

iv
Panofsky, E. and Smith, J., 2005. The life and art of Albrecht Dürer. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

v
Wisse, J., 2021. [online] Metmuseum.org. Available at:
<https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/durr/hd_durr.htm> [Accessed 11 June 2021]..

vi
Wisse, J., 2021. [online] Metmuseum.org. Available at:
<https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/durr/hd_durr.htm> [Accessed 11 June 2021]..

vii
Wisse, J., 2021. [online] Metmuseum.org. Available at:
<https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/durr/hd_durr.htm> [Accessed 11 June 2021]..

viii
Wisse, J., 2021. [online] Metmuseum.org. Available at:
<https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/durr/hd_durr.htm> [Accessed 11 June 2021]..

ix
Wisse, J., 2021. [online] Metmuseum.org. Available at:
<https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/durr/hd_durr.htm> [Accessed 11 June 2021]..