Exhibitions

Out of the Past: Printmaking 15th to 18th Century

April 16, 2022 - June 12, 2022

Graphics Gallery

European printmaking dates to the 1400s, when mills in Germany and Italy made paper more available for everything from playing cards to religious pamphlets. Artists in this early period employed relief printing, primarily woodcuts or wood engravings, but by the early 1500s the intaglio or engraving and etching process became the preferred method, giving artists freer rein to create highly detailed images.

The early 16th century through the 18th century saw the unlimited potential of the print medium, with these works spreading images of people and places across Europe that would have otherwise been unknown or unseen. Prints provided a way for artists to explore a variety of topics, including religion, landscape, satire, everyday life, or imaginary scenes. 

This exhibition highlights works from this intensely creative period, featuring works by Old Masters, including Dürer, Goltzius, Rembrandt, Piranesi, and Hogarth, demonstrating a variety of techniques and subjects.

From the Exhibition

• Niccoló Vicentino, Italian, ca. 1503-ca.1540/50. Christ Healing the Lepers, printed 1608. Chiaroscuro woodcut on paper. 12 15/16 × 19 in. Museum purchase with funds from the Jill Ford Murray Irrevocable Trust in memory of her parents, Carlotta Espy Ford and George Ross Ford, Jr., and 2012.31

• Urs Graf the Elder, Swiss, 1485 - 1527. The Last Supper and Christ Washing the Feet of His Disciples, plate 9 from the Passio domini nostri Jesu Christ (The Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ), ca. 1503. Woodcut on paper, 8 5/8 × 6 1/16 in. Gift of Annette Marcinkoski 2016.84

• Albrecht Dürer, German, 1471 - 1528. Christ Before Caiaphas, 1512. Engraving on paper, 4 5/8 × 2 15/16 in. Museum purchase with funds from the Jill Ford Murray Irrevocable Trust in memory of her parents, Carlotta Espy Ford and George Ross Ford, Jr., and her grandparents, Grace Miller 2013.62