around 1465 -1524 · Augsburg and German Renaissance

Between late Gothic and Renaissance, Hans Holbein the Elder renews altarpiece, portrait and drawing in a major family workshop in Augsburg.

Hans Holbein the Elder, called Hans Holbein the Elder in French, was born around 1465 in Augsburg. His career accompanied the transformation of German painting around 1500. The first works retained the Gothic taste for line, high draperies and compartmentalized ensembles. Over the course of commissions and exchanges with the Netherlands, Italy and contemporary engraving, Holbein introduced more volumetric bodies, coherent spaces and more individualized observation. Over the course of commissions and exchanges with the Netherlands, Italy and contemporary engraving, Holbein introduced more volumetric bodies, coherent spaces and more individualized observation. He led an important workshop, working for churches, convents and patrician families. His sons Ambrosius and Hans Holbein the Younger received their first training there. The great altarpieces remain the center of his production. The Gray Passion uses an almost monochrome range to focus attention on the drama of Christ. The Dominican Altarpiece in Frankfurt deploys a scholarly narration adapted to convent meditation. The Virgins and Child combine tenderness, dignity and precision of fabrics, while silver-tipped drawings, stained glass projects and engraved wood reveal the diversity of the workshop. Holbein also knows how to inscribe donors and families in the sacred image, linking portrait, memory and salvation. Despite the financial difficulties at the end of his life, his influence remains decisive. Holbein also knows how to inscribe donors and families in the sacred image, linking portrait, memory and salvation. Despite the financial difficulties at the end of his life, his influence remains decisive. Holbein also knows how to inscribe donors and families in the sacred image, linking portrait, memory and salvation. Despite the financial difficulties at the end of his life, his influence remains decisive. Holbein also knows how to inscribe donors and families in the sacred image, linking portrait, memory and salvation. Despite the financial difficulties at the end of his life, his influence remains decisive. Holbein also knows of the face, the line and the object that his son will carry to the Tudor court. The "Hans Holbein the Elder" selection notably compares Gray Passion: Ecce Homo and Dominican Altarpiece of Frankfurt: Ecce Homo. His reading favors the material.

In Holbein the Elder's studio, tradition is not still: the Gothic altarpiece absorbs perspective, volume and portrait until it becomes a laboratory of the Northern Renaissance.