Saxifraga aizoon
1928
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
photogravure
Dimensions
image/plate: 26 × 19 cm (10 1/4 × 7 1/2 in.) sheet: 31.2 × 24.2 cm (12 5/16 × 9 1/2 in.)
Classification
Department
CPH
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Mary and Dan Solomon and Patrons' Permanent Fund
Accession Number
2006.133.34.30
Art Historical Context
Karl Blossfeldt's *Saxifraga aizoon* (1928) captures the delicate intricacies of the rockfoil plant in stunning detail, transforming a humble botanical specimen into a sculptural marvel. A pioneering German photographer and sculptor, Blossfeldt specialized in close-up images of plants, flowers, and seeds, often magnified up to 30 times their natural size. This photogravure, measuring 26 × 19 cm on the plate, exemplifies his lifelong project to reveal nature's hidden geometries, as showcased in his seminal book *Urformen der Kunst* (Art Forms in Nature), published the same year. Photogravure, ...
About the Artist
Karl Blossfeldt
Karl Blossfeldt (1865–1932), born in the rural village of Schielo near Germany's Harz Mountains, began his artistic journey as a sculptor. At age sixteen, he apprenticed at the Art Ironworks and Foundry in Mägdesprung, honing skills in casting and modeling that would inform his lifelong fascination with form and structure. He later studied at the Kunstgewerbemuseum in Berlin, the School of the Mus...