The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of April 16, 2024
Saint George Slaying the Dragon
c. 1510–1515
(German, 1472–1553)
Sheet: 16.3 x 12.7 cm (6 7/16 x 5 in.)
Catalogue raisonné: Hollstein 82
Location: not on view
Description
In 1505, Cranach became court painter to Friedrich the Wise, Elector of Saxony, who encouraged the production of prints because they promoted the artistic and intellectual vitality of his court and the magnificence of its patronage. The Holy Roman emperor Maximilian did the same, making aristocratic sponsorship of printmaking a critical factor in the rising status of the woodcut. Cranach-together with Albrecht Dürer in Nuremberg and Hans Burgkmair in Augsburg (both on view nearby)-elevated the Northern woodcut to the highest level of artistic expression in the first decade of the 16th century. Friedrich's coat of arms (crossed swords) and the arms of Saxony appear prominently on most of Cranach's prints, suggesting that the artist worked under a kind of retainer-though the arms may also have operated somewhat like a privilege, an exclusive authorization to publish prints under Friedrich's legal protection.- Cleveland Museum of Art, “Major Contemporary German Painting Acquired by CMA,” June 9, 1999, Cleveland Museum of Art Archives. archive.org
- Against the Grain: Woodcuts from the Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 17-November 9, 2003).From Rembrandt to Rauschenberg: Recently Acquired Prints. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 17-November 26, 2000).
- {{cite web|title=Saint George Slaying the Dragon|url=false|author=Lucas Cranach|year=c. 1510–1515|access-date=16 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1999.47