Christ Blessing the Children

Lucas Cranach the Elder prints bring the strange elegance of the German Renaissance into your home. Cranach was court painter to the Electors of Saxony, a close friend of Martin Luther and perhaps the most successful German artist of his time. This collection gathers art prints of his slender Venuses and Eves, his portraits of princes and reformers, religious scenes, mythologies and hunting pictures, and his woodcuts.

About Lucas Cranach the Elder

Lucas Cranach the Elder was born in Kronach, in Upper Franconia, probably in 1472. He learned to draw from his father, Hans Maler, and later took the name of his hometown as his surname. He may have spent time in Vienna around 1500.

In 1504 Frederick the Wise, Elector of Saxony, appointed him court painter in Wittenberg, a post he kept under three electors until 1550. Wittenberg was at the heart of the Protestant Reformation, and Cranach became a close friend of Martin Luther. He painted Luther many times, provided woodcuts for Luther's German Bible and helped create a new kind of Lutheran religious art. He ran a large, busy workshop, and he married Barbara Brengbier of Gotha.

When Elector John Frederick was captured in 1547, Cranach pleaded for him and later joined him in exile. He died in Weimar on 16 October 1553, aged 81. His son Lucas Cranach the Younger carried on the workshop for decades.

Style and Subjects

Cranach's style is instantly recognizable. His female nudes, from Venus and Eve to the Three Graces, are slender and pale, with small heads, almond eyes and long, elegant bodies, often set against dark backgrounds and wearing only a hat or a sheer veil. They have a playful, slightly mysterious charm.

His portraits of Saxon princes, scholars and reformers are sharp and direct, with crisp outlines and rich costume detail. He also painted altarpieces, saints and martyrdoms, hunting scenes and allegories, and his woodcuts spread his images across Germany.

Famous Works

• Venus and Cupid (1509), Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg. An early nude Venus, among the first in northern European painting.
• The Martyrdom of Saint Barbara (c. 1510), Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. A vivid saint's martyrdom in a German landscape.
• Cupid Complaining to Venus (c. 1526), National Gallery, London. Cupid stung by bees after stealing honey, a warning about pleasure and pain.
• Adam and Eve (1528), Uffizi Gallery, Florence. The first couple at the moment of temptation.
• The Judgment of Paris (c. 1528), Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Paris chooses between three goddesses.
• The Three Graces (1531), Louvre, Paris. The three goddesses of charm, small and jewel-like.
• Melancholy (1532), Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen. A winged woman whittles a stick while children play and witches ride the clouds.
• The Fountain of Youth (1546), Gemäldegalerie, Berlin. Old women bathe and emerge young again.

Decorating with Cranach Prints

Cranach's portraits of princes and reformers, including Martin Luther, suit a study, library or home office. Their dark backgrounds, crisp outlines and rich reds and blacks look striking in black or gilt frames.

His Venuses, Eves and Graces bring Renaissance elegance to a bedroom or dressing room, and his hunting scenes and religious panels make a strong focal point in a dining room or hallway with dark wood and classic furniture.

FAQ

What art movement was Lucas Cranach the Elder part of?

Cranach was a leading painter and printmaker of the German Renaissance and the main artist of the Protestant Reformation in Saxony.

What is Lucas Cranach the Elder's most famous painting?

His portraits of Martin Luther and his nudes, such as Adam and Eve (1528) and Venus and Cupid, are among his best known. The Fountain of Youth (1546) in Berlin is another famous work.

Where can I see Cranach's original paintings?

His work is in museums across Europe and America, including the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin, the Uffizi, the Louvre, the Hermitage, the National Gallery in London and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

How can you recognize a Cranach painting?

Look for slim, pale figures with small heads and almond eyes, crisp outlines, dark backgrounds and fine details of jewelry and costume. Many works carry his emblem of a winged serpent.

What was Cranach's connection to Martin Luther?

Cranach was a close friend of Luther in Wittenberg. He painted at least eleven surviving portraits of him and made woodcut illustrations for Luther's German translation of the Bible.

Related Artists

• Lucas Cranach the Younger — his son, who continued the family workshop
• Albrecht Dürer — the great German Renaissance master of his generation
• Hans Baldung — German Renaissance painter of similar subjects
• Albrecht Altdorfer — German painter of the Danube School, active in the same years
• Hans Holbein the Younger — German portrait painter of the same era