Hans Holbein the Younger (1497-1543) is one of the greatest portrait painters of the 16th century. A keen observer of his era, Holbein became the court painter of Henry VIII and his sundry wives. His talent was established at the early age of 18 when he illustrated Erasmus’manuscript The Praise of Folly. Holbein’s wide range of pursuits included not only painting, drawing, book illustration and designing stained-glass windows, jewellery and luxury objects, but also fanciful trompe l’œil murals and architecture. The breadth of his activities allows one to describe him as a genuine European artist. But his speciality was anamorphosis, teasing the viewer’s vision with a sense of humour.
- INTRODUCTION
- THE EVOLUTION OF THE AMBASSADORS
- Two protagonists
- Three different points of view
- From two-dimensional canvas to three-dimensional effect
- POSSIBLE ARTISTIC SOURCES
- The portrait of Sir Thomas More’s family
- The portrait of Henry VIII
- JUXTAPOSITION OF IMAGE AND TEXT
- The studiolo picture
- Holbein’s self-portraits
- A STILL LIFE OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS
- The artist as a disseminator of knowledge
- THE ANAMORPHOSIS OF THE SKULL
- The death’s-head as an object of meditation
- The knowing mirror of Prudentia
- Vanitas: an ambiguous element of the picture
- The skull anamorphosis: a stumbling block
- THE SIGNIFICANT SHADOW
- SECULAR AND SPIRITUAL TIME IN THE AMBASSADORS
- The “Ambassadors” and Their Attributes
- The Shadow of the Future
- SIR THOMAS MORE’S UTOPIA
- THE DANCE OF DEATH
- Christ in the Tomb
- Adam and Eve
- THE INTELLECTUALISM OF HOLBEIN, THE ARTIST
- Historical temporality and the presentness of the creative act
- The signature of death
- DRAWINGS
- BIBLIOGRAPHY
- INDEX
- NOTES
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