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The Origins of Etching in Germany
Etching was first used as a printmaking technique in the mid-1490s by the Augsburg printmaker and armor decorator Daniel Hopfer. Augsburg had long been known for its armorers and the etched decoration of steel and iron. Collaboration among the city's close network of craftsmen and artists ultimately led to the reimagining of the etching technique, as etched designs and compositions began to be produced on paper and shared with a wider market. Hopfer was extremely innovative in his use of the medium, deploying a combination of techniques to achieve a range of textures and effects, all displayed in his tour de force Death and the Devil Surprising Two Women.
Some of the most prolific and accomplished printmakers in Germany experimented with etching in the early sixteenth century. Albrecht Dürer made six etchings. The Large Cannon, his final and most adept experiment in the medium, showed not only how the etched line could approximate the drawn one, but also how etching could be used to depict landscape to extraordinary effect. |