Albrecht Altdorfer
February 18, 2008
I’ll be including medieval and classical art from now, for no other reason that I enjoy classical history. Hopefully, it’ll make for an interesting, varied, yet relevant mix.
This is the most famous painting of Albrecht Altdorfer. The subject is the victory of the young Alexander the Great in 333 B.C. over King Darius III’s Persian army.
1. The Battle of Alexander at Issus - 1529. Alexander the Great (!!) is in his horse-drawn chariot, in the centre of the painting.
2. The Battle of Alexander at Issus (close-up / detail)
Altdorfer referred to ancient descriptions of the actual number and type of combatants in the battle. To accomplish this visually, he adopted a bird’s-eye view, so that the two protagonists are lost in the antlike mass of their own armies.
Altdorfer was also an engraver, and architect. He is considered the first true landscape painter and a pioneer of copperplate etching.
The artist spent most of his life in Regensburg, Germany, as city architect and life member of the city council. He was one of The Little Masters, a group of 16th-century German engravers noted for their expert execution of designs on a minute scale.
Altdorfer’s pictures are characterized by an evocative imagination, ranging from the playful to the grandiose, always picturesque and fantastic.
References: WebMuseum - Altdorfer, Albrecht, CGFA - bio
Posted in oil
jess@dragonsinn.net
February 21st, 2008 at 5:51 am
I still prefer looking at fantasy arts and newcomer artists over classical arts and popular artists in your blog
But your blog looks more professional this way. Do you also paint?
DB
February 21st, 2008 at 7:59 am
hello DB,
i spent a while thinking about it! — and well, i guess i’m quite “medieval” at heart…
i’ll try to keep an interesting mix of whatever fits ^^
i paint a bit. i like watercolors. there are a few on this url (that i’ve used for this comment). i used to post some onto deviantart, but i’m not on it much these days. how about you?
i’m currently “gathering some thoughts” about my book (that i wanna see published)…that’s why i’m a bit MIA now and then, heh.
jess.
February 21st, 2008 at 3:44 pm
Awesome! Good luck with publishing your book! What is it about?
I don’t paint, I am satisfied with just examining other’s paintings with an open jaw
Take care!
DB
February 21st, 2008 at 9:41 pm
thank you for the book well wishes (always appreciated). i’d say it’s a modern love story (i like to keep the details…hush-hush : P).
i started drawing in 2003/04, with lots of long breaks in between.
if you sketch, i hope to see some — and all the best on that too!
February 22nd, 2008 at 2:01 am
Thanks!