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Major
Art History & Museum Studies
Research Abstract
In the final decade of his career, Sienese artist Domenico Beccafumi (1484/86-1551) turned his attention from painting and sculpture to the art of printmaking, producing an exquisite oeuvre of chiaroscuro woodcuts that pointed to new ambitions for the aging artist. Contextualizing his artistic aims, this research explores Beccafumi's printmaking oeuvre in relation to Italian Renaissance debates over artistic status and comparisons between the arts the evolving role and status of printmaking in Europe. I argue that Beccafumi sought to elevate the status of humanist printmaking from an arte minore to an arte maggiore, and by extension, to highlight his own status as an intellectual, divine maker on par with the greatest artists of the Renaissance.
Faculty Mentor/Advisor
Catherine Lusheck
transcript
Domenico Beccafumi: Elevating the Italian Renaissance Printmaker and the Art of Printmaking
In the final decade of his career, Sienese artist Domenico Beccafumi (1484/86-1551) turned his attention from painting and sculpture to the art of printmaking, producing an exquisite oeuvre of chiaroscuro woodcuts that pointed to new ambitions for the aging artist. Contextualizing his artistic aims, this research explores Beccafumi's printmaking oeuvre in relation to Italian Renaissance debates over artistic status and comparisons between the arts the evolving role and status of printmaking in Europe. I argue that Beccafumi sought to elevate the status of humanist printmaking from an arte minore to an arte maggiore, and by extension, to highlight his own status as an intellectual, divine maker on par with the greatest artists of the Renaissance.
