Ce est ung tractat de la noble art de leguille ascavoir ouvraiges de spaigne... page 20 (verso)
after 1527
Medium
Woodcut
Dimensions
Overall: 6 7/8 x 5 11/16 in. (17.5 x 14.5 cm)
Classification
Books|(not assigned)|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Mary M. Greenwood, in memory of Eliza Rudd Greenwood, 1953
Accession Number
53.566.3(40)
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the intricate world of Renaissance ornamentation with this woodcut from *Ce est ung tractat de la noble art de leguille ascavoir ouvraiges de spaigne...* (page 20 verso), created by Willem Vosterman after 1527. This page, measuring just 6 7/8 x 5 11/16 inches, is part of a rare treatise on the "noble art of the needle"—specifically Spanish embroidery patterns. Such pattern books were essential tools for artisans, spreading elaborate designs for textiles, tapestries, and decorative arts across Europe during the early 16th century. Vosterman, a masterful Antwerp woodcutter active arou...
About the Artist
Willem Vosterman
Willem Vosterman was a Netherlandish engraver and printmaker who worked within the rich tradition of graphic art that flourished in the Low Countries during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Precise details of his birth, death, and training are not firmly established in the historical record, but his surviving prints reflect the skilled craftsmanship and commercial acuity that characterized...