Until 25 September 2022 the exhibition ‘Traces: Renaissance Drawings for Flemish Prints’ can be visited at the Courtauld Gallery in London. The display is curated by Drs. Maarten Bassens, affiliated researcher at Illuminare and Getty Paper Project Curatorial Fellow at the Courtauld. Showcasing a fine selection of drawings from the gallery’s rich collection, the exhibit explores the fascinating world of print production in 16th-century Antwerp. It features drawn print designs by some of the greatest Netherlandish masters of the era, including Pieter Bruegel the Elder (ca. 1525-1569) and Maerten van Heemskerck (1498 – 1574).
The display will offer a rare opportunity to see this lesser-known aspect of The Courtauld’s collection, and to delve deeper into the traces left by artists and craftsmen who created the designs for the flourishing print trade in 16th-century Antwerp, a pre-eminent international hub for the graphic arts.
Highly skilled draughtsmen produced finished designs which expert printmakers translated onto copper printing plates. In turn, these were published in great numbers by venturesome publishers who saw the economic potential in the dissemination of relatively inexpensive prints. In this way ingenious artistic ideas and elaborate motifs could travel and influence the development of art across Europe – and beyond.
ℹ️ 18 Jun – 25 Sept 2022
ℹ️ The Courtauld Gallery -The Gilbert and Ildiko Butler Drawings Gallery
To book your tickets for the exhibition, please here.