renaissance - old masters - durer

durer.. is super interesting.  he came from northern europe.  so.. his models are not italian.  but what is incredible about durer is his intensity.  the intense detail he used in his paintings are awesome.  he was also a master printmaker.. so yeah.  cool.

Albrecht Dürer (German: [ˈalbʁɛçt ˈdyːʁɐ]; 21 May 1471 – 6 April 1528) was a German painter, printmaker, mathematician, and theorist from Nuremberg. His prints established his reputation across Europe when he was still in his twenties, and he has been conventionally regarded as the greatest artist of the Northern Renaissance ever since.  His woodcuts, such as the Apocalypse series (1498), retain a more Gothic flavour than the rest of his work. His well-known works include the Knight, Death, and the Devil (1513), Saint Jerome in his Study (1514) and Melencolia I (1514), which has been the subject of extensive analysis and interpretation. 

his print of a rhinoceros is pretty interesting.  he had actually never seen a rhino before. his friend sent him a letter from africa describing it and he drew what he thought it must look like. pretty damn close.  its so cool that it has a cult following.  lots of people use the shape and fill it with unrelated things.. which is (hint) a damn cool idea.