From October 20, 2013 through January 26, 2014, the Crocker Art Museum presents Passion and Virtuosity: Hendrick Goltzius and the Art of Engraving, bringing together nearly 60 works from one of the most significant and influential European printmakers.
Known as the master Dutch engraver of his time, as important for engraving as Rembrandt was for etching, Hendrick Goltzius was a pivotal printmaker of the late 16th century. His engaging subjects and highly versatile technique earned him praise and commissions throughout Europe. Drawing on collections throughout the state, including University of San Diego, LACMA, and the Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts as well as the Crocker, this exhibition brings together a splendid selection of works for the first in-depth California exhibition on Goltzius in twenty years.
At the core of this collaborative exhibition are Goltzius’s Life of the Virgin and Passion of Christ series which show his chameleon-like virtuosity. Divided into five sections, the exhibition focuses as much on technique as on the subjects in the series and explores the influence and interpretation of earlier printmakers in Goltzius’s work. Demonstrating the visual dialogue between Goltzius and precursors such as Albrecht Dürer, Passion and Virtuosity provides a deeper understanding of the history of engraving and visual culture in the late 16th century. The artist’s own passion for his subjects and technique make the objects in the exhibition the most ambitious works of his career.
The exhibition will be accompanied by a catalogue, which includes an illustrated checklist and essays by co-organizing curators William Breazeale, Crocker Art Museum, and Victoria Sancho Lobis, University of San Diego. After its presentation at the Crocker Art Museum, the exhibition will travel to the Robert and Karen Hoehn Family Galleries, University of San Diego from February 14 through June 1, 2014.