The Moralizing Prints of Cornelis Athonisz
by Christine Megan Armstrong
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Despite his status as a major Dutch artist of the sixteenth century, Cornelis Anthonisz (c. 1505-1553) has never been the object of any rigorous examination. This book is the first comprehensive study of Cornelis's moralizing prints--an important portion of his oeuvre and one unmatched by any of his predecessors. Organized thematically, the discussion proceeds from the essentially secular to more overtly sacred subjects. The author also considers Cornelis's prints in terms of their show more significant place in the history of that pictorial-textual hybrid form, the broadsheet. As might be expected of an artist specializing in the comparatively modest medium of woodcut and active throughout his life in Amsterdam, a city still in its cultural infancy, Cornelis seems to have directed most of his efforts not at some select, erudite audience, but rather at a broad, if literate, urban middle-class market. Yet however colloquial in character, his often allegorical imagery is shown to be remarkably rich, witty, and inventive. Drawn from a wide range of artistic traditions, literary conventions, and often from such oral sources as proverbs and folklore, it offers a clear reflection of the economic expansion, social tensions, political uncertainties, and religious unrest that characterized the Netherlands during the first half of the sixteenth century. Strongly focused on its content yet broad ranging in its concerns, this study not only makes a significant contribution to art history, but also holds considerable appeal for those with an interest in the history of the Reformation, of Germanic literature, and of popular culture. show lessTags
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