b. 1497, Augsburg, d. 1543, London was a German artist and printmaker who worked in a Northern Renaissance style. He is best known as one of the greatest portraitists of the 16th century.[2] He also produced religious art, satire and Reformation propaganda, and made a significant contribution to the history of book design. He is called "the Younger" to distinguish him from his father, Hans Holbein the Elder, an accomplished painter of the Late Gothic school. Born in Augsburg, Holbein worked mainly in Basel as a young artist. At first he painted murals and religious works and designed for stained glass windows and printed books. He also painted the occasional portrait, making his international mark with portraits of the humanist Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam. When the Reformation reached Basel, Holbein worked for reformist clients while continuing to serve traditional religious patrons. His Late Gothic style was enriched by artistic trends in Italy, France, and the Netherlands, as well as by Renaissance Humanism. The result was a combined aesthetic uniquely his own. Holbein travelled to England in 1526 in search of work, with a recommendation from Erasmus. He was welcomed into the humanist circle of Thomas More, where he quickly built a high reputation. After returning to Basel for four years, he resumed his career in England in 1532. This time he worked for the twin founts of patronage, Anne Boleyn and Thomas Cromwell. By 1535, he was King's Painter to King Henry VIII. In this role, he produced not only portraits and festive decorations but designs for jewellery, plate, and other precious objects. His portraits of the royal family and nobles are a vivid record of a brilliant court in the momentous years when Henry was asserting his supremacy over the English church. Holbein's art was prized from early in his career. The French poet and reformer Nicholas Bourbon dubbed him "the Apelles of our time".[3] Holbein has also been described as a great "one-off" of art history, since he founded no school.[4] After his death, some of his work was lost, but much was collected, and by the 19th century, Holbein was recognised among the great portrait masters. Recent exhibitions have also highlighted his versatility.   Related Paintings of Hans holbein the younger :. | Portrait of Henry Viii | Man in a Black Cap | The Ambassadors | The Body of the Dead Christ in the Tomb and a detail | Portrait of Anne of Clevers,Queen of England |
Related Artists:
Johann Walter
painted Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden at the Battle of Breitenfeld in 1632
CHARONTON, Enguerrand
French Northern Renaissance Painter, ca.1420-1466
George Hayter
1792 - 1871 English painter and printmaker. He was the son of Charles Hayter (1761-1835), miniature painter, author of manuals for art instruction and Professor of Perspective and Drawing to Princess Charlotte. In 1808 George entered the Royal Academy Schools, and in 1815 was appointed Painter of Miniatures and Portraits by Princess Charlotte. Hayter was awarded the British Institution's premium for history painting for the Prophet Ezra (1815; Downton Castle, Heref. & Worcs), purchased by Richard Payne Knight. Encouraged by his patron, John Russell, 6th Duke of Bedford, he travelled to Italy to study in 1816, gaining election as an honorary member of the Accademia di S Luca in Florence. Returning to London in 1818, Hayter practised as a portrait painter in oils and history painter and occasionally acted as an art dealer. Dubbed 'The Phoenix' by William Beckford, Hayter showed a pomposity that irritated his fellow artists, but he mixed freely with many aristocratic families.