Hans Luther

Hans Luther

Title

Hans Luther

[Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017, 270, No. 168]

Painting on paper, impregnated with oil

Medium

Painting on paper, impregnated with oil

[Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017, 270, No. 168]

With a solemn, almost somewhat embittered expression Lucas Cranach the Elder depicts the face of an old man: his wavy hair, thinning on the forehead has turned grey, the skin is withered and traversed by deep furrows, the eyebrows are drawn together morosely, while the lips are pressed together with

With a solemn, almost somewhat embittered expression Lucas Cranach the Elder depicts the face of an old man: his wavy hair, thinning on the forehead has turned grey, the skin is withered and traversed by deep furrows, the eyebrows are drawn together morosely, while the lips are pressed together with a surly expression. His gaze, in fact his whole face, is turned to the right in the direction of a hidden counterpart. The artist deliberately chose paper of an intense brown tonality to reinforce the vibrant complexion of the flesh paint. Cranach differentiates with an accomplished command of technique between the detailed rendering of the face and the sketchy, sparse brushwork of the doublet.

[Metzger, Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017, 270, No. 168]

Attribution
Lucas Cranach the Elder

Attribution

Lucas Cranach the Elder

[Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017]

Production date
about 1527

Production date

about 1527

[Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017, 270, No. 168]

Dimensions
Dimensions of support: 21.8 x 18.3 cm

Dimensions

  • Dimensions of support: 21.8 x 18.3 cm

  • [Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017, 270, No. 168]

Signature / Dating

None

Inscriptions and Labels

None

Inscriptions and Labels

Inscriptions, Badges:

  • None

Owner
Albertina, Vienna
Repository
Albertina, Vienna
Location
Vienna
CDA ID
AT_AW_26156
FR (1978) Nr.
FR-none
Persistent Link
https://lucascranach.org/en/AT_AW_26156/

Literature

Reference on page Catalogue Number Figure / Plate
Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017 270 No. 168
EditorGunnar Heydenreich, Daniel Görres, Beat Wismer
TitleLucas Cranach der Ältere. Meister - Marke - Moderne. [anlässlich der Ausstellung "Cranach. Meister - Marke - Moderne", Stiftung Museum Kunstpalast, Düsseldorf, 08. April 2017 - 30. Juli 2017]
Place of PublicationMunich
Year of Publication2017
Show Literature

Research History / Discussion

The study served as a preparatory drawing for the portrait of Hans Luther (1459 – 1531) […] and was created in 1527, when the couple visited their famous son Martin in Wittenberg. This is a rare case whereby both the preparatory drawing and the panel have survived. The conflict experienced in the relationship with his father proved to be formative for Martin Luther. Cranach has slightly tempered the features described above for posterity in the painted version. But the study reveals the sitter’s character to be informed by remoteness, denial and defeatism and is at the same time one of the greatest achievements of German portraiture.

[Metzger, Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017, 270, No. 168]

  • Hans Luther, about 1527

Images

Compare images
  • overall

Versions

Portrait of Hans Luther, Luther's father
  • Portrait of Hans Luther, Luther's father, 1527
  • DE_WSE_M0070
  • Painting
  • Wartburg-Stiftung, Eisenach

Citing from the Cranach Digital Archive

Entry with author
<author's name>, 'Hans Luther', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/AT_AW_26156/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})
Entry with no author
'Hans Luther', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document, entry or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/AT_AW_26156/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})

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