Deugden en ondeugden
Medium
engraving
Dimensions
50; 70
About this artwork
number: ‘108’
Art Historical Context
Heinrich Aldegrever's *Deugden enugden* (Virtues and Vices), in 1549, is a delicate engraving measuring just 70mm by 50mm—perfectly sized for intimate study or inclusion in a collector's album. As one of the renowned "Little Masters" of the Northern Renaissance, Aldrever, a German goldsmith and printmaker from Soest, excelled in crafting intricate small-scale works that rivaled the grandeur of larger paintings. This piece, cataloged as number 108, exemplifies his prolific output of over 200 engravings, often blending moral allegory with exquisite technical precision. The title translates to "...
About the Artist
Heinrich Aldegrever · 1502–1561
Heinrich Aldegrever, born in 1502 in Paderborn, Westphalia, to parents Herman and Katherine Trippenmeker—a family of clog-makers known by the dialect name Trippenmecker—emerged as a multifaceted artist in the German Renaissance. His early training remains undocumented, though he likely apprenticed in a Soest goldsmith's workshop after relocating there around 1525, where he joined the painters' gui...