Albrecht Dürer was a German artist, whose 16th century engravings, prints, portraits and watercolour works have been a subject of wide discussion and analysis for the last four centuries. He was one of the premier names from Renaissance period who merged classical religious themes with modern scientific expression. The most accomplished of his master-prints were created within a year, between 1513-1514. These three much celebrated artworks include Knight, Death and the Devil (1513), Saint Jerome in his study (1514) and Melencolia I (1514). Some common themes that consistently appear throughout his works are an hourglass referring to the ephemeral nature of life, a dog symbolic of loyalty, and ray-tracing technique (objects deliberately placed along an invisible line) to denote a subtle context.
Knight, Death and The Devil
This engraving is a masterclass in symbolism. An armored knight walks through a narrow road encountering some unwarranted creatures tailing him along the way. A rotting corpse with an hourglass in hand symbolizing Death. A goat headed creature riding a smaller horse in parallel symbolizing the Devil and his inferior morality compared to the high rider. A small dog riding underneath the horse symbolic of inner courage and loyalty. The fortress on the mountaintop symbolic of faith and its finality as the ultimate goal of life. This whole masterpiece is an ode to the conflict between temptation and 'morality', one of the dominant discussion points back then (remember it was the Renaissance period) and captures an early struggle the Christian religion endured.
Saint Jerome In His Study
This one is a seemingly innocent work, but hides deeper meaning under the plain sight. The ray tracing puts St. Jerome's head, Cross on the table and a skull exactly aligning to a one single imaginary line, symbolic to death and resurrection in Christianity. The lion and the dog (again?) don't just serve their usual symblic purpose, but also connect to the saint's story. Saint Jerome himself seems buried in his thoughts (unusually) far off the center of this engraving, far away from the observer (us). Or is it safe to say that he feels much closer, much intimate with his 'faith' while in a meditative mood?
Melencolia I
This is perhaps the most famous one of the three master-prints. Melencolia I touches upon the intellectual side of life- art & craft, masonry, astronomy, physics, maths- all scholarly areas considered rational and creative. Scores of random items fill the busy scenery here, such as an hourglass, a saw, a weighing scale, a hand plane, a ladder, a hammer and chisels, a roped bell and an asymmetric mathematical object, even a rainbow and a comet. A bat like creature flashes the art's title on its wings, while witnessing it all sits a mysteriously sad feminine angelic figure named as Melencolia, or as some believe Geometry. For centuries, the first masons, sculptors, artists and rational thinkers from Greece to Egypt to India found geometry the most sacred science. Melencolia personifies that very figure from our shared human history and symbolizes it as the lack of an artistic drive, stagnation of creativity or as some of us often face at times- the writer's block. It sits with nonchalance to the items it carries on self- a purse, a bunch of keys, a flower wreath on head, symbolizing that no money, secrets or beauty interest her anymore. The feeling in such a moment is tough to describe when you lose your motivation. But perhaps this is why it is one of the most relatable and widely talked about artwork from that era.
And oh, did I talk about the magic square this emgraving showed for the first time in history? This oldest known example of brilliant magical mathematical puzzle is immortalized by Dürer through his master work. It cleverly shows 1514 (as the date signature) in the bottom row. The debate hasn't ended yet about its true intended purpose or secret encoded message.
Click on to read if you are interest to further know what a magic-square is- https//en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_square
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