Graven Images: The Rise of Professional Printmakers in Antwerp and Haarlem, 1540-1640

The ninety prints in this exhibition catalog trace the evolution of several styles of engraving and etching over a crucial period. At the beginning of this time, engraving in Northern Europe was primarily a by-product of the goldsmith's workshop and the artist's studio. Its implications as a medium of reproduction were only beginning to be grasped, and the very idea of reproducing a work of art in another medium was scarcely defined. By the end of the period, engraving was the medium of choice for making reproductions of works of art in all media, and a range of styles had evolved that balanced reproductive fidelity, calligraphic virtuosity, and durability in the printing of an edition. This volume features three scholarly essays on the history of printmaking in the Netherlands and includes 116 b/w illustrations.

Larry Silver, a historian of Northern Renaissance art, received his Ph.D. from Harvard University and is currently Farquhar Professor of Art History at the University of Pennsylvania. His other books include Hieronymus Bosch (Abbeville Press), the general survey Art in History, and Landscapes and Peasant Scenes: The Rise of Pictorial Genres in the Antwerp Art Market.