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The development of landscape painting in the fifteenth century introduced little that was new, other than a growing refinement of the techniques discovered by van Eyck and his contemporaries. We must not forget, though, that Hugo van der Goes, Dirk Bouts, Memlinck and Gerard David (who was already a part of the sixteenth century) were by no means just followers or imitators, but were all masters in their own right. But it is not until the sixteenth century that some new elements were discovered and developed. In this respect Dürer, who is the focus of our attention here, rose far above his contemporaries. We will discuss not only his place in the history of landscape art but also the various graphic techniques he used.
Germany experienced a period of massive turmoil and change in the early sixteenth century. Many diverse movements and trends coexisted and competed for a following. The art of this period was integrally connected with the profound spiritual struggles of the day and reflected the great diversity of world views; it is therefore difficult to capture it in a few words.
Dürer is one of the greatest artists of all time, a genius of almost incomprehensible diversity. He was a man full of conflicting tendencies who expressed himself passionately and vehemently, and yet strove to work within the rules that govern a controlled and rational style of art. He was an artist who could portray nature with great accuracy based on his incredible powers of observation, without ever becoming tedious or losing his eloquence. At the same time he sought to portray the ideal human figure, constructed according to the rules for proportion, etc. He was a man with an almost inexhaustible ability to fantasize, but he never depicted bizarre and outlandish worlds in his art (as is so common today); his monsters and his fantasy creatures are always plausible. Even his depiction of the most ‘unearthly’ visions imaginable, such as those from the Revelation of St John, have something self-evident and real about them without ever becoming shallow or losing their visionary qualities.
His art never lapses into ‘isms’ and therein may lie one of the secrets of Dürer’s greatness. His art always conveys a healthy sense of reality, and the artist has a normal relationship with nature. That is to say, he never sees it as his enemy (as happens so often in modern art), but neither does he worship it, thus robbing it of its createdness (as Romanticism so often did). He presents the world as it is, without falling into a shallow materialistic naturalism that recognizes only what it can see with its own eyes. In short: he recognizes his place as a creature among creatures, part of God’s rich and diverse world in which everything has its place, and in which nothing stands alone or is a law unto itself. Every part is bound by the God-ordained order of creation.
Because of his rich personality full of conflicting tendencies Dürer is not easy to analyse or understand, but his perception of the world is rooted in a solid, Bible-believing background and comes across as sound and true. That wholesome understanding is what makes his art so rich and full. Even when he allows his fantasies free rein and depicts the most unusual stories or imagines the things that John ight have seen on Patmos, his art always retains a sense of ‘normalcy’; it never becomes forced, weird, or contrived.
In 1495, and again from 1505–1507, Dürer travelled to northern Italy. The journey through Tyrol and the Austrian mountains had a strong influence on his landscape art. He captured some of it in a number of watercolours (most of which are housed in Vienna) which clearly show his growing insight into the structure of the landscape and especially into the portrayal of space.
In contrast with the more or less construed and schematized landscapes of the fifteenth-century Dutch artists, Dürer’s thoroughly natural representation is a large step forward in the technique of landscape drawing. He gives ample evidence of his mastery of this technique in his gorgeous copper engravings, which quickly became famous and were freely imitated. We especially want to point out his portrayal of fortresses built on rocky cliffs. He had seen these on his journeys through Tyrol and was such an expert on the subject of fortification building that he even authored a book on the topic. The picture that springs readily to mind today when we imagine an ideal castle has been largely shaped by Dürer’s art. After all, have we not been familiar since childhood with his creations through reproductions and in works of better and worse quality by his many followers? You should really try to see some of Dürer’s original engravings and woodcuts. Enjoy especially the utterly wholesome and sound poetry of his panoramas which reveal not only the majesty of the natural world but also the most minute details – a blade of grass or a lizard. (Has any other artist even come close to Dürer’s skill in depicting animals?) The many details are never imposing or intrusive but always keep to their own humble place.
Graphics
It was not only, or even primarily, his innovations in the field of landscape art that earned Dürer his fame. His incredible engravings and woodcuts will always be his most famous legacy, and it is in these that he has never been surpassed. To understand these graphic works of art, we will diverge for a moment to explain something of the technique and history of this art form.
Graphic art uses a variety of specific techniques to make multiple copies of an artwork. The oldest of these techniques is the woodcut. We know that the Chinese were acquainted with this process – in Central Asia, for example, a huge library was discovered of printed books decorated with woodcuts, probably dating back to the seventh century after Christ. Most likely, however, this technique was not directly carried from there to Europe. Rather, it was independently discovered here. The earliest known European woodcuts date back to the 1400s, although it is uncertain whether the honour of having created the first woodcuts on this continent belongs to Germany or to France. Still, it was not so much a discovery as a new application of a familiar technique, because already by the end of the 1300s people were making printed fabrics – i.e. fabrics to which the colours and motifs were applied with ‘blocks’. When we remember that this technique was adopted from the Byzantine tradition, it seems possible that in a roundabout way the Chinese technique of woodcuts came to us in the West via the Byzantine route. Thus, it may be that Europeans just came up with the idea of applying this process to books and prints. It was such an inexpensive process that an almost infinite number of copies could be produced in this way.
At first this art form was used almost exclusively for making prints of devotional pictures – an unpretentious form of folk art. The woodcut was also used to illustrate books, but in this case it hardly rose above the level of a handcraft. It was Dürer who finally figured out how to use this process to create art of the highest quality. It seemed that in a very short time he developed the technique to a standard that it seldom reached again. Because of Dürer the woodcut also became Germany’s art form par excellence in the early sixteenth century, and whenever this technique has been revived, Dürer and his contemporaries have served as the main source of inspiration.
The process of making a woodcut is based on the concept of relief printing. One takes a piece of wood and carves out everything that is meant to be white on the finished print. Thus the lines stand out like narrow ridges. Next ink is applied to the block, which is then pressed onto a sheet of paper so that the ink-soaked ridges make their marks on the paper.
It is fairly certain that the art of copper engraving or etching was discovered in Germany in the years just prior to the mid fifteenth century. It involves the process of intaglio, whereby the artist engraves lines in the copper plate using a burin (a kind of engraving tool). When ink is applied to the plate, it runs into the grooves, which then make black marks when pressed against the paper. This process, much more difficult than the woodcut, had already been used in the fifteenth century by a number of master artists; among them Schongauer is deservedly the most famous. Once again, Dürer managed to carry this art form to new heights of excellence, and perhaps his work set the highest standards for what can be done in this genre. He has never been surpassed and has seldom been equalled. It is a process that allows the artist to draw incredibly fine lines and intricate details. One can do no better than to see some original Dürer prints, which can be found in the print galleries in the Gemeentemuseum in The Hague, or in Leiden or Amsterdam, for example. The treasures lie there just waiting to be discovered. Reproductions can give only a very relative impression of the actual quality of the artwork, since it seems that the precision and fineness of the lines and the deep black colours can never be satisfactorily reproduced.
Then we have etching. Apparently this technique was first used by weapon-smiths, who used it to create elaborate decorations on harnesses, etc. Taking a metal plate, one coats it with a thin layer of wax, scratches the desired image into that wax using a needle, and then immerses the plate in an acid-bath. The acid only eats away the areas where the wax has been scratched off and thus the image is engraved on the metal plate. One can then use that metal plate to make copies; this process is one that we call intaglio. The advantage of etching is that one can draw in the wax, as it were, so that the lines can be much more flowing and free than is possible with the much more difficult techniques of woodcutting and copper engraving.
The first etchings were produced around 1500. Dürer used this technique too, on occasion. But stylistically his etchings are closely related to the copper engravings. It was not until the seventeenth century, especially in the work of Rembrandt, that this technique gave rise to a new genre of art with its own unique character.
An example: Dürer’s Cannon of 1518
It was hard to choose an artwork to discuss in this article, since Dürer’s body of work is so incredibly vast. We selected this particular etching of a cannon in a landscape because it gives a good impression of Dürer’s skill as a landscape artist.
Notice the spacious breadth of the panorama. Notice how vivid and detailed the images are without ever becoming overly fussy – is that not how we actually experience reality? It all looks so natural that there is hardly anything to say about it – explanation is not really needed. But the extraordinary quality of the work is certainly not commonplace, make no mistake about that. Notice how Dürer places the little town on the plain – so naturally, without anything being squashed – just the way things really appear to us. The wide pastures and mountain slopes spread themselves out beautifully in the distance, interspersed occasionally with a grove of trees. On the left we see a lake or the ocean with little ships sailing on it; many more lie in the harbour of a town of which we can see only the faint outlines. Take note too of the wonderful play of light and dark across the print, contributing not only to a lovely and responsible composition, but also giving each area the proper emphasis and the appropriate contrast with the other parts.
In the foreground we see a large cannon: it, too, has been rendered appropriately and vividly. Dürer was interested in just about anything, and there was no area of reality he considered beneath his dignity. He had an interest and a loving concern for the world around him – a rare thing for artists today. The cannon has been magnificently incorporated into the whole, and portrayed in a way that is not at all contrived or forced. It is anything but a technical working plan, despite the technically precise and fine details. Notice the man with the turban standing there looking at the cannon – once again we can point to the ease with which these figures move, the naturalness of their pose, the artistically flawless way in which they have been placed: they really do stand with both feet on the ground. We are reminded that during the time this print was made (1518) a war with Turkey was raging.
Undoubtedly there is much more to see in this marvellous print, which in the original measures 22 x 33 cm. We see here in a completely convincing way a portrayal of reality, in which everything is in its proper place, nothing has been overdone, but neither are there any ‘empty spots’. All of the elements have been woven into a composition that ties together the individual parts, the play of lines on the surface and spatial dimensions. The landscape is not just depicted but has become a poem with its own unique rhythm and sound.
Originally published in Dutch in Stijl 1, 9, 1952.
