Altdorfer, Albrecht - Landscape with a Footbridge Fine Art Print

Brandywine General Store

$9.99 
SKU: Old Masters #36

A Museum Quality Print of Landscape with a Foot Bridge, First Ever Landscape Picture. This oil on vellum and wood was painted by the artist, Albrecht Altdorfer, sometime during the period of 1518 to 1520. This is thought to be the very first landscape picture painted without people in the history of European art. Up until this time it was though to be anti Christian to paint landscapes without a religious figure present somewhere in the composition, plus at this early time in art history it was thought to be a waste of time and money to just paint a scene with nothing in it but nature. Altdorfer was the first artist to test these traditions by painting pure nature landscape paintings. The original size of this masterpiece is 16.2 by 14 inches and hangs in the National gallery in London England. The scene shows a wooden bridge spanning a river, in the distance are mountains, a Church spire and the houses of a small village. The details of the composition may be based on the topography of a specific location in the Danube Valley, but it is most likely not meant to be a specific place, but rather painted from the artist's imagination.Altdorfer places a large tree that is cut off by the margins at the center making it the central axis and focus within the piece. He gives the tree human like qualities such as the drapery of its limbs. Old Masters #36

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