Albrecht Dürer at Age Fifty-Six

Art Historical Context

Behold *Albrecht Dürer at Age Fifty-S*, a poignant woodcut portrait created around 1528 by Erhard Schön a Nuremberg printmaker closely associated with the master himself. This image captures the renowned German Renaissance artist Albrecht Dürer in his final year—Dürer passed away in 1528 at precisely that age—serving as a heartfelt tribute from one generation of printmakers to another. Schön, influenced by Dürer's innovative, immortalized his mentor's dignified profile against a simple background, emphasizing Dürer's enduring legacy in Northern European art. Printed on laid paper, this woodcut exemplifies the relief printing method that Dürer perfected, allowing for bold lines, intricate details, and widespread dissemination of images during the Renaissance. Measuring 28.5 x 23.4 cm, its intimate scale made it ideal for collectors and admirers, bridging fine art and popular culture. Woodcuts like this were revolutionary, enabling artists to reach broader audiences beyond paintings. Housed in the National Gallery of Art through the Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund, this print highlights the vibrant Nuremberg school and the cultural reverence for Dürer, whose self-portraits and technical prowess shaped printmaking for centuries. A testament to artistic lineage, it invites us to reflect on how one visionary's influence rippled through time.

About the Artist

Erhard Schön · 1491–1542

He was famed as a popular printmaker, with attributions including around 1200 illustrations for 116 books and about 200 separate woodcuts. Among the best works are the woodcuts that he and Hans Springinklee made for the "Hortulus animae", published in Nuremberg in 1515 by Johannes Koberger. It was one of the most popular pre-Reformation anthologies of prayers, published in at least 20 German and L...