2.
historical heads Nurnberg (St Lorenz Church): *
interior, St. Michael by Veit Stoß 2 interior wall sculptures
3.
head (portraits of) Durer: *
4.
head (portraits of):Rembrandt: *
In his portraits he angles the sitter's face in such a way that the ridge of the nose nearly always forms the line of demarcation between brightly illuminated and shadowy areas. A Rembrandt face is a face partially eclipsed; the nose, bright & obvious, thrusting into the riddle of halftones, serves to focus the viewer's attention upon, and to dramatize, the division between a flood of light, overwhelming clarity and brooding duskiness.
Among the more prominent characteristics of his work is his use of chiaroscuro, the theatrical employment of light and shadow (derived from Caravaggio,) but adapted for very personal means. Also notable is the dramatic and lively presentation of subjects, devoid of the rigid formality that his contemporaries often displayed, with a deeply felt compassion for mankind, irrespective of wealth and age.
5.
Hellenistic sculpture of Sophocles: *
Bust of Sophocles, Roman copy after a Greek
original of the 4th century BC, Musei Capitolini,
Rome
This painting is a group portrait of the officials of the Drapers’ Guild, who were controllers of cloth-samples. They were appointed by the Mayor of Amsterdam to regulate the quality of cloth sold in the city. They held their meetings at the Hall of the Drapers Guild, where the painting was displayed after completion. Also known as The Sampling Officials, the painting depicts the five-man Board of the Drapers’ Guild along with an attendant, who is shown without a hat. Rembrandt gives great attention to each subject by capturing different expressions on their faces thus giving them different personalities. At the same time, he also brings a strong sense of togetherness by using compositional devices. Rembrandt is regarded as the greatest master in group-portraiture and The Sampling Officials is his most famous work in the genre; painted in his later years.
The Portrait of Emperor Maximilian I is an oil painting by Dürer, dated 1519.
In the Spring of 1512, the newly elected emperor Maximilian I of Habsburg was in Nuremberg where he met Dürer. In 1518, during the Diet of Augsburg, he called Dürer to portray him. They met & Durer made a pencil drawing , from which he later painted the panel portrait. By the time the painting was completed the emperor had died.
He is portrayed from three-quarter on a green background. The arms lie on an unseen parapet coinciding with the lower boundary of the painting (a Flemish painting tradition). His left hand holds a large pomegranate (symbol of cohesion in the diversity, the Holy Roman Empire, the grains representing his subjects). He wears a gown with a wide fur collar and broad-brimmed dark hat. His grey hair crown his aged (59 in 1518) but still aristocratic face. In the upper left is the Habsburg coat of arms & Golden Fleece chain, near a long inscription in capital characters which resumes the titles & deeds of the emperor
