Edvard Munch: The Woodcut & Printmaker

Edvard Munch - Ashes II (Aske II) - 1899 - Lithograph with watercolor additions - 13 15/16 x 18" (35.4 x 45.7 cm); sheet (irreg.): 16 1/4 x 19 1/2" (41.3 x 49.6 cm) - Kristiania (present day Oslo), Norway.

Perhaps his most direct formal influence on subsequent art can be seen in the area of the woodcut, the medieval form of which was actually revived as a tradition, later, by the Expressionists. But Munch was a pioneer in this area, which opened the flood gates on printmaking.

Printmaking was an essential component of Munch's art following his introduction to the graphic media in 1894. With the capacity to produce multiple works from a single plate, stone, or woodblock, printmaking served to expand the accessibility of the artist’s themes to the general public and to provide income. It also enabled him to experiment with his imagery: by altering color, line, texture, and composition, Munch drastically changed the appearance and emotional impact of a given subject. Thus a woman kissing a man could appear amorous in one print, predatory in another; a sick child could seem feverish in one impression, ashen in the next.

The Limbourg Brothers Calendar: January (Banquet Scene)

The Limbourg Brothers - Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry: January, miniature - ca. 1411-1416 - Manuscript - 11 2/5 × 8 3/10 in. (29 × 21 cm) (click photo for larger image)The Limbourg brothers (Dutch: Gebroeders van Limburg; fl. 1385 – 1416) were famous Dutch miniature painters (Herman, Paul, and Johan) from the city of Nijmegen. They were active in the early 15th century in France and Burgundy, working in the style known as International Gothic.

Renowned for their International Gothic-style manuscript illustrations, the three Limbourg brothers did much to influence early Dutch art. Descendants of artist-artisans, the brothers served under the Duke of Burgundy and his brother Jean, Duke of Berry, illuminating prayer books and bibles. 

The brothers are best known for their Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry, which is considered their masterpiece and one of the landmarks of the art of book illumination. The brothers’ detailed, sensitive renderings of landscapes combined naturalism with decorative effects. They are also known for their sophisticated construction of pictorial space, expressive emotional narratives, and elegant use of light.

They left the Très Riches Heures unfinished when they all died suddenly, perhaps during an outbreak of the plague early in 1416. Evidence of their deaths was obtained from the archives of Nijmegen, which record the receipt of the brothers’ possessions by their siblings still living in Nijmegen.

Did You Know?

In 2003 street artist Banksy stuck his own work to the wall in the Tate Modern Museum. The prank was soon undone by its inadequate glue, but for a few hours Crimewatch UK Has Ruined the Countryside For All of Us was hung in one of the world’s most famous museums. It also inspired Andrzej Sobiepan, a Polish art student, to a similar feat in 2005, where for three days he successfully passed off his work as part of the National Museum’s collection.

Rest on the Flight to Egypt

Orazio Gentileschi - Rest on the Flight to Egypt - 1625-26 - Oil on canvas, Height: 54 in (137.1 cm); Width: 85 in (215.9 cm) - Kunsthistorisches Museum - Vienna (click photo for larger image)Orazio Gentileschi (1563–1639) was one of the more important Italian Mannerist painters who came under the influence of Caravaggio and who was one of the more successful interpreters of his style. His daughter, Artemisia Gentileschi, who was trained in his studio, also became a noteworthy Baroque artist.

Bisected by a rough brick wall, dominated by the donkey’s head popping above it, Gentileschi’s Rest on the Flight to Egypt seems a strange composition. Joseph is essentially passed out with exhaustion, his head lolling backwards. The Virgin Mary’s feet are dirty and she is too tired to even cradle the hungry baby, who looks furtively in the direction of the viewer while being nursed. The Holy Family are fugitives from the murderous Herod and his Massacre of the Innocents (another theme addressed in the history of art).

The Christmas Story: Adoration of the Shepherds

Giorgione - Adoration of the Shepherds - 1505/10 - Oil on canvas - 90.8 × 110.5 cm - National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. (click photo for larger image) Giorgione (c. 1477 - 1510) was a mysterious Italian painter of the Venetian school, who died in his thirties. He is known for the elusive poetic quality of his work, though only about six surviving paintings are firmly attributed to him.

The work featured here is a masterpiece of contemplation. The elderly Joseph is deep in prayer, while Mary holds a pose of silent worship before the Christ child, whose hazy face appears inward-looking. 

The shepherds, in their ragged clothes, are speechless and spellbound, but full of love for the child. They are the first to arrive, the first to understand the miracle they are seeing. The scene is very close and intimate, against the distant Venetian landscape. Although not a sheep is in sight, the shepherds are recognizable by their humility.

Despite his premature death, Giorgione was a highly influential artist credited with introducing the High Renaissance to Venice. Qualities of mood and mystery are found in his art.