The Three Crosses, drypoint by Rembrandt, 1653, state III of IV
An old master print (also spaced masterprint) is a work of art produced by a printing process within the Western tradition. The term remains current in the art trade, and there is no easy alternative in English to distinguish the works of "fine art" produced in printmaking from the vast range of decorative, utilitarian and popular prints that grew rapidly alongside the artistic print from the 15th century onwards. Fifteenth-century prints are sufficiently rare that they are classed as old master prints even if they are of crude or merely workmanlike artistic quality. A date of about 1830 is usually taken as marking the end of the period whose prints are covered by this term.
The main techniques used, in order of their introduction, are woodcut, engraving, etching, mezzotint and aquatint, although there are others. Different techniques are often combined in a single print. With rare exceptions printed on textiles, such as silk, or on vellum, old master prints are printed on paper. This article is concerned with the artistic, historical and social aspects of the subject; the article on printmaking summarizes the techniques used in making old master prints, from a modern perspective.
Many great European artists, such as Albrecht Dürer, Rembrandt, and Francisco Goya, were dedicated printmakers. In their own day, their international reputations largely came from their prints, which were spread far more widely than their paintings. Influences between artists were also mainly transmitted beyond a single city by prints (and sometimes drawings), for the same reason. Prints therefore are frequently brought up in detailed analyses of individual paintings in art history. Today, thanks to colour photo reproductions, and public galleries, their paintings are much better known, whilst their prints are only rarely exhibited, for conservation reasons. But some museum print rooms allow visitors to see their collection, sometimes only by appointment, and large museums now present great numbers of prints online in very high-resolution enlargeable images.
Melencolia I, 1514, engraving by Albrecht DürerThis donor portrait of about 1455 shows a large coloured print attached to the wall with sealing wax. Petrus Christus, NGA, Washington.
An oldmasterprint (also spaced masterprint) is a work of art produced by a printing process within the Western tradition. The term remains current in...
master print" is an original print (for example an engraving, woodcut, or etching) made by an artist in the same period. The term "oldmaster drawing"...
from a plate to a rubber blanket and then to the printing surface. Oldmasterprint, a work of art produced by a printing process in the Western tradition...
Housebook Master, a south German fifteenth-century artist, all of whose prints are in drypoint only. Among the most famous artists of the oldmasterprint, Albrecht...
illustrated with cartoon-like images if they were illustrated at all. Oldmasterprints, nearly all on religious subjects, served many of the same functions...
the oldmasterprint and, slightly later, popular prints, both of which were actually much quicker in reaching the mass of the population than printed text...
education, the concept is typically only applied to the visual arts. The oldmasterprint and drawing were included as related forms to painting, just as prose...
Austrian scholar and artist. His catalogue of oldmasterprints, Le Peintre Graveur is the foundation of print history, and he was himself a printmaker practicing...
Master printmakers or master printers are specialized technicians who hand-print editions of works of an artist in printmaking. Master printmakers often...
etching in particular, but also mezzotint and other techniques. Many oldmasterprints also combine techniques on the same plate, further confusing matters...
later). Oldmasterprint is a term that at this period includes popular prints, but later is restricted to more expensive and purely artistic prints. Although...
Albrecht Dürer Self-portrait by Rembrandt Bank note detail Lineography Oldmasterprint Screentone Hatching Stippling Halftone Ben-Day dots Perspective (graphical)...
Netherlands). He is an important person in the development of the oldmasterprint. He made more than 1,400 etchings that chronicled the life of his period...
the fourteenth. In Europe, woodcut is the oldest technique used for oldmasterprints, developing about 1400, by using, on paper, existing techniques for...
including paper money, flags, seals, medals, drawings, oldmasterprints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, obverse means the front...
Banhua Oldmasterprint New Year picture Kalamkari Ghalamkar Bagh Print Textile printing Bagru Print Conservation and restoration of woodblock prints Barrett...
developed further into cross-hatching, especially in the oldmasterprints of the fifteenth century. Master ES and Martin Schongauer in engraving and Erhard Reuwich...
ancient Indian records of royal lineages, land grants etc. Printmaking Oldmasterprint This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Copperplate...
history of oldmasterprints. In total, he produced over 620 engravings, most of which were copies of other prints; they represent about 20% of print production...
largest and most important print rooms in the world with approximately 65,000 drawings and approximately 1 million oldmasterprints, as well as more modern...
printmaking technique was transferred from fabric to paper in the oldmasterprint and popular prints. There was a paper mill in Switzerland by 1432 and the first...
The earliest depictions were all in the more private medium of the oldmasterprint, and mostly from Venice. They were often based on the extremely brief...
Global Information
