From the call for papers, 10 November 2009
Hans von Aachen was one of the most important artists of Emperor Rudolf II. His rise to the Prague court lead him across Europe, from his native Cologne, through Italy (Venice, Rome and Florence) to Munich and Augsburg, where he worked as painter, draughtsman and designer of prints. The life and work of Hans von Aachen exemplify the cultural transfer between North, South and Central Europe in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries in a uniquely varied way.
The symposium will take place in the context of the first ever monographic exhibition on the artist’s work in 2010. Many international loans will be presented at three exhibition venues: the Suermondt-Ludwig-Museum in Aachen (11 March-13 June), the Prague Castle Picture Gallery (1 July- 3 October) and the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna (19 October- 9 January).
Symposium
Objective of the symposium will be to explore the cultural transfer in the work of Hans von Aachen and to illuminate the cosmopolitan milieu of the artists at the courts in Italy and Central Europe. In this context other artists active in Prague will also be discussed. Symposium venue Prague is an ideal place to illustrate the cosmopolitan atmosphere of Central European culture at the end of the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. The Symposium will take place during the exhibition, so that the participants will have occasion to exchange opinions and ideas in front of the exhibits.