October 24, 2000
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Anne Mannix
amannix@artbma.org
Tara Fenlon
tfenlon@artbma.org
(410) 396-6310

RARE EXHIBITION OF RENAISSANCE BOOKS AND PRINTS SHOWCASES ESTEEMED COLLECTIONS OF THE BMA,THE WALTERS, AND JOHNS HOPKINS SHERIDAN LIBRARIES

Major Collaborative Exhibition Examines Ways Master Printmaker Albrecht Dürer Revolutionized the Development of Book Arts in Northern Europe

Once home to a handful of prominent collectors, Baltimore today hosts one of the finest assemblages of Renaissance books and prints in the country. Now found in the collections of The Baltimore Museum of Art, the Walters Art Gallery, and the Sheridan Libraries of The Johns Hopkins University, more than 100 books and prints have been brought together as part of this exquisite exhibition telling the story of early book production in northern Europe. Featuring many of the most celebrated books of the Renaissance, Book Arts in the Age of Dürer underscores the pivotal role German master printmaker Albrecht Dürer played in the development of book arts during the mid-15th through 16th centuries. The exhibition is on display at The Baltimore Museum of Art from October 15, 2000 through January 21, 2001.

Book Arts in the Age of Dürer includes 35 never-before-displayed books from The Walters and the Hopkins Sheridan Libraries and 65 rarely seen woodcuts from the BMA's collection. Showcasing early editions of the three most celebrated publications of the Renaissance, The Large Woodcut Passion, The Apocalypse, and The Life of the Virgin, the exhibition also includes illustrated books about astronomy, medicine, natural history, religion, travel, geography, classical history, and mythology. Additionally, visitors will see how hand-painted illuminations evolved over time into books illustrated with woodcuts as well as gain an understanding of the technical aspects of printing, binding, and coloring.

Undoubtedly, Albrecht Dürer's woodcuts from the 1490s revolutionized the practice of illustrating books. Prior to his work, book illustrations were much simpler in technique and design. This incredible exhibition explores the German master's enormous contribution to the art form, focusing on books that influenced Dürer's achievements, books Dürer illustrated, and books produced in the wake of his successful publications.

According to Susan Dackerman, Curator of Prints, Drawings & Photographs, "This exhibition is a real testament to the city's long history of collecting and a tremendous opportunity to see magnificent books from The Walters and Sheridan Libraries hung in relationship to framed prints from the BMA's collection. For example, the Walters' bound copy of Dürer's Passion will be installed in a case adjacent to 11 of the BMA's individually framed sheets from the same book, allowing the audience to see the original format of the book, as well as all of its illustrations simultaneously."

Book Arts in the Age of Dürer is organized by The Baltimore Museum of Art in collaboration with the Walters Art Gallery, and the Sheridan Libraries of The Johns Hopkins University. The exhibition is co-curated by Susan Dackerman, BMA Curator, Prints, Drawings & Photographs; William Noel, Associate Curator of Manuscripts and Rare Books, the Walters Art Gallery; and Bett Miller, Curator of Rare Books at the Milton S. Eisenhower Library of The Johns Hopkins Sheridan Library.

Exhibition highlights include Dürer's exceptional woodcuts of Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, c. 1496-1498, St. John Devouring the Book, c. 1496-1498, and Ecce Homo, c. 1498-1499. Also featured is a rare edition of Martin Luther's controversial 1522 December Testament (the first German translation of the new testament), an early copy of the Nuremberg Chronicle, and a beautifully illustrated Aesop's Fables from 1481.

Book Arts in the Age of Dürer is divided into three thematic sections. The first section provides a history of early book production and features a leaf from the Walters' Gutenberg Bible (1455), believed to be the earliest book printed from movable type. Examining the evolution from books scripted and illustrated by hand to printed books illustrated with woodcuts, the section illustrates how book illustrations prior to Dürer were simple in both character and in function. Bold outlines defined figures, with a few hatching lines sometimes added to create effects of volume or tone. To enhance the naturalism of the illustrations, publishers and booksellers usually hand-painted the images. A few inventive woodcut designers initiated a move toward more detailed book illustrations in the 1490s, but it was Dürer's work at the turn of the century that completely transformed the industry.

The second section focuses on books illustrated by Dürer at the turn of the 15th century, when stories about the end of the world spread rampantly throughout Europe. Dürer capitalized upon this fear with his first independently published book, the Apocalypse, 1498. Reflecting a subtle use of contour and intricate shading lines, the book's illustrations created naturalistic effects of tone and depth, eliminating the need for the application of color. Not only does the series demonstrate the artist's technical ingenuity, it also demonstrates his unprecedented approach to representing narrative. For the first time in the 50-year history of the printed book, an artist presented the illustrations as the primary vehicle for the narration of the story. The Apocalypse woodcuts are a fully comprehensible rendering of the biblical story, and with them, Dürer elevated the medium of woodcut to an independent art form.

The Apocalypse narrates the last book of the New Testament, the Revelations of St. John the Divine. St. John was a first-century saint who refused the Roman Emperor Domitian's demand to make sacrifices to the gods. As punishment, the Emperor boiled St. John in a vat of oil, from which he emerged unscathed. Thereafter, Domitian banished him to the Island of Patmos where he experienced and transcribed his revelations of an apocalyptic end to the world.

The final section features books published in the wake of Dürer's success-religious books (Bibles, Passionals, Books of Hours); books with secular themes (astronomy, medicine, travel, geography); and books related to classical history and mythology. This section spotlights printmakers Hans Sebald Beham, Hans Burgkmair, and others who tried to imitate Dürer's sophisticated illustrations.

BROCHURE
A 32-page brochure, featuring three curator essays, color illustrations, and a checklist, accompanies the exhibition. Essays focus on the history of book collecting in Baltimore, Dürer's book design and production, and history and technology of books produced from 1450 to 1500. Members of the Press may receive a complimentary copy by contacting BMA Public Relations at 410/396-6310.

THE BALTIMORE MUSEUM OF ART
Founded in 1914 by civic leaders, The Baltimore Museum of Art is Maryland's largest art museum. Its permanent collection includes more than 85,000 objects ranging from ancient mosaics to contemporary art. The Cone Collection-the BMA's preeminent holdings of Post-Impressionist and modern art-is the cornerstone of the Museum's permanent collection. The highlight of The Cone Collection is a group of 500 works by Henri Matisse, considered among the most important and comprehensive of its kind in the world. The Collection also includes major examples by Picasso, Cézanne, Gauguin, van Gogh, Renoir, and other icons of early 20th-century French art. Altogether, approximately 3,000 objects form this impressive collection, assembled by two Baltimore sisters, Dr. Claribel Cone (1864-1929) and Miss Etta Cone (1870-1949). Other areas of strength include: modern and contemporary arts, the arts of Africa, Old Master paintings and sculpture, European and American decorative arts, textiles, and one of the finest assemblages in the country of works on paper from the Renaissance to the present day. Many of the works in Book Arts in the Age of Dürer are drawn from the BMA's renowned Garrett Collection of more than 20,000 fine prints. Collected by T. Harrison Garrett, this group of works is remarkable for its comprehensiveness. Other highlights come from the Riggs Collection, a group of high-quality Renaissance prints as well as from the collection of Frederick Werther, a collector of leaves from books printed before 1500.

THE WALTERS ART GALLERY
The Walters Art Gallery, a public art museum, is located in Baltimore's historic Mount Vernon Cultural District at North Charles and Centre Streets In 1931, the City of Baltimore received one of its greatest treasures when Henry Walters (1848-1931) bequeathed his Art Gallery and his collection of 22,000 works of art to his native city "for the benefit of the public." The Walters bequest is still considered among the greatest acts of cultural philanthropy in our nation's history. William Walters (1819-94), Henry's father, had assembled a splendid collection of 19th-century art and Asian art, and under his son's auspices the collection was transformed into one of the finest of all American private collections. Henry Walters' interests were boundless, ranging over 5000 years, from ancient Egypt to art nouveau. Although significantly expanded, the museum's strength and scope continue to reflect Mr. Walters' collecting genius and philanthropic spirit. The most modern of The Walters' three museum buildings currently is undergoing major renovation. Scheduled for a grand reopening in October 2001, the newly renovated 1974 Building will showcase a four-story glass entry atrium, a Family Art Center, and new galleries for its collections of ancient and medieval art. The result will be a glorious improvement for art and art lovers.

THE SHERIDAN LIBRARIES OF THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
The Sheridan Libraries encompass the Milton S. Eisenhower Library and its collections at the Albert D. Hutzler Reading Room in Gilman Hall, the John Work Garrett Library at Evergreen House and the George Peabody Library at Mt. Vernon Place. In 1998 these libraries were re-dedicated as "The Sheridan Libraries" to reflect the extraordinary generosity of Mr. and Mrs. R. Champlin Sheridan. Together these collections provide the major research library resources for the university.

VISITOR INFORMATION

The Baltimore Museum of Art is open Wednesday through Friday, 11 a.m. until 5 p.m.; FREESTYLE, first Thursday of every month, 5 until 9 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. The Museum is closed Monday, Tuesday, New Year's Day, July 4, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Admission is free for BMA Members and ages 18 and under; $6 for ages 19 and over; $4 for seniors and full-time students; free for all every Thursday. Admission to FREESTYLE and all related FREESTYLE activities is also free. The BMA is located on Art Museum Drive at North Charles and 31st streets, three miles north of Baltimore's Inner Harbor. To obtain general Museum information, call (410)396-7100. Visit the BMA's Web site BMA's Web site.

The Sheridan Libraries encompass the Milton S. Eisenhower Library and its collections at the Hutzler Reading Room, Garrett Library and the George Peabody Library.

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