St. Sebastian

1469·Engraving on paper·Sheet trimmed to platemark: 15.4 × 11.1 cm (6 1/8 × 4 3/8 in.)

<p>The opportunity it offered to show a seminude man in a contorted pose made Saint Sebastian’s martyrdom a popular subject among 15th-century artists. Here the German printmaker Martin Schongauer depicted the saint leaning serenely against a delicately rendered tree, despite the numerous arrows protruding from his body. Schongauer took an iconic, simplified approach to this common theme by barely suggesting the background landscape. Unlike his highly complex, detailed compositions such as <em>Saint John the Evangelist on Patmos</em> (1968.121), this print emphasizes the contrast between the graceful figure of Sebastian bound to the tree and the predominantly blank background.</p>

Catalogue

Year: 1469
Medium: Engraving on paper
Dimensions: Sheet trimmed to platemark: 15.4 × 11.1 cm (6 1/8 × 4 3/8 in.)
Collection: Art Institute of Chicago
Artist: Martin Schongauer

Artist

Martin Schongauer

Painting

Martin Schongauer, also known as Martin Schön or Hübsch Martin by his contemporaries, was an Alsatian engraver and painter. He was the most important printmaker north of the Alps before Albrecht Dürer, a younger artist who collected his work. Schongauer is the first German painter to be a significant engraver, although he seems to have had the family background and training in goldsmithing which was usual for early engravers.

Colmar, France

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