Albrecht Durer was one of the most popular artists of the German Renaissance. He lived in Nuremberg. Nuremberg, at the time, was a cultural center with a group of internationally renowned artists.

Durer did not follow in his fathers footsteps to become a Goldsmith. Instead he wanted to be a painter. Although, Durers early training as a Goldsmith is reflected in his attention to detail. He traveled to Italy in 1494. This first trip to Italy introduced him to Italian Renaissance ideas. There he discovered a concept of artists as intellectuals, sellers of ideas as well as pictures. He was introduced to the idea of an artist as a creative genius.

When he returned to Germany, he published a woodcut series on the Apocolypse. It consisted of a title page and 14 full page illustrations with text on the back of each of them. A woodcut, also known as a print, is a technique where an image is carved onto the surface of a block of wood. The images on the surface will show black and the rest will show white. This was commonly done on Beechwood. Durer probably hired a skilled carver to cut his wood blocks. The carvers had to be trusted to follow his drawings perfectly. Durer made his fortune from these prints.

Durer became more familiar with Italian art on his second trip to Italy. He set out to reform the art of his own country. He published writings and manuals that covered Renaissance problems with perspective, proportions, and techniques.

You can see the Italian influence on Durer with a self portrait done in 1500. It was signed "Albrecht Durer of Nuremberg...age 28." This self portrait was not done to advertise himself as an artist. The portrait is a full frontal unlike the three quarter pose of the Renaissance. It reflects other images of Christ that were popular in Northern Europe. You can see the Naturalism with Durer changing his own hair color to look more like christs'. He believed that artists were creative geniuses, possibly God-like. He wrote " The more we know, the more we resemble the likeness of Christ who truly knows all things." The triangular composition of this piece reflects the High Renaissance, but it also shows the Northern European influence with the lifelike look. There is such amazing attention to detail. There is a glow to the skin, texture of the hair, and the reflective quality of the eyes. Also, the way Durers' hand rests on the fur of the collar shows a common pose of the hand with other depictions of Christ during the Renaissance. It is interesting that the gaze is directed at the viewer. It appears to me that the left eye is set in a direct stare (from the onlookers point of view) while the right eye is looking slightly to the right. I'm not sure if this is done intentionally to give an unsettling feel or not. If you cover the left eye with a finger, you may see it too. (Its possible I have just been looking at this painting too long).

All of Durers' art is a tribute to the way he masterfully crafted a paintbrush. It is no wonder he was one of the most popular artists of the German Renaissance.