item details
Overview
Georg Pencz was probably born in Westheim, near Bad Windsheim, Germany. He travelled to Nuremberg in 1523 and joined Albrecht Dürer's studio. Like Dürer, he visited Italy and was profoundly influenced by Venetian art; it is believed he worked with the engraver Marcantonio Raimondi. In 1525, he was imprisoned with the Beham brothers, Sebald and Berthal, the so-called "godless painters", for spreading the radical religious views of Martin Luther's adversary Thomas Müntzer. The three were pardoned shortly afterwards and became part of the group known as the "Little Masters" because of their tiny, intricate and influential prints. Around 1539, Pencz briefly returned to Italy, visiting Rome for the first time, returning to Nuremberg in 1540, where he became the city painter and earned his greatest success as a portraitist. As an engraver, he ranks among the best of the “Little Masters”. In 1550, he was named court painter by Albert, Duke of Prussia, but died in Leipzig before arriving at Albert's court.
The Biblical story of Joseph was depicted by Pencz in a series of four prints, and this is the third in the series. Joseph is depicted as a teenager, being sold by his jealous brothers as a slave to Ishmaelite merchants, who are leading a camel caravan, carrying spices and perfumes to Egypt. In Pencz's depiction the brothers appear relatively gentle and solicitous, yet they would fake his violent death to their grieving father Jacob. Joseph himself is distraught, wiping his eyes, but not otherwise resisting his fate. One of the merchants' camels fills the compositional void and lends a sense of authenticity to the story.
See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georg_Pencz
Dr Mark Stocker Curator, Historical International Art February 2017