Master of the Karlsruhe Passion - Disrobing of Christ

The Master of the Karlsruhe Passion is the

notname In art history, a ''Notname'' (, "necessity-name" or "contingency-name") is an invented name given to an artist whose identity has been lost. The practice arose from the need to give such artists and their typically untitled, or generically title ...

of a German painter of the late Gothic period active in the

Upper Rhine The Upper Rhine (german: Oberrhein ; french: Rhin Supérieur) is the section of the Rhine between Basel in Switzerland and Bingen in Germany, surrounded by the Upper Rhine Plain. The river is marked by Rhine-kilometres 170 to 529 (the sc ...

. Very influential on other painters in the region, he may be identified with the Strasbourg painter

Hans Hirtz Hans Hirtz or Hirtze was a German painter of the late Gothic period, recognized as a major painter by art historians as early as the 16th century. He was active between 1421 and 1463 in Strasbourg and other areas of the Upper Rhine. His years o ...

. He is named after his main work, the Karlsruhe Passion, though he may also have been the artist behind the murals in the former Dominican church in Strasbourg, only known through two 17th century copies (a coloured drawing and an etching).

The Karlsruhe Passion

The Karlsruhe Passion is an altarpiece on panel showing the

Passion of Christ In Christianity, the Passion (from the Latin verb ''patior, passus sum''; "to suffer, bear, endure", from which also "patience, patient", etc.) is the short final period in the life of Jesus Christ. Depending on one's views, the "Passion" m ...

painted for the Saint Thomas Church in

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

around 1450 and split up during the Reformation. From 1858 most of the panels were gathered back together in Strasbourg, meaning that six panels are now in the

Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe The Staatliche Kunsthalle (State Art Gallery) is an art museum in Karlsruhe, Germany. The museum, created by architect Heinrich Hübsch, opened in 1846 after nine years of work in a neoclassical building next to the Karlsruhe Castle and the ...

. However, one of the

Arrest of Jesus The arrest of Jesus was a pivotal event in Christianity recorded in the canonical gospels. It occurred shortly after the Last Supper (during which Jesus gave his final sermon), and immediately after the kiss of Judas, which is traditionally sai ...

remains in the

Wallraf–Richartz Museum The Wallraf–Richartz Museum (full name in German: ') is one of the three major museums in Cologne, Germany. It houses an art gallery with a collection of fine art from the medieval period to the early twentieth century. History The museum ...

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

. Each panel is 46 cm wide and 67 cm high but their original layout is now unknown. Master of the Karlsruhe Passion - Prayer on the Mount of Olives.jpeg, Prayer on the Mount of Olives (Karlsruhe) Master of the Karlsruhe Passion - Arrest of Christ.jpeg, Arrest (Cologne) Master of the Karlsruhe Passion - Flagellation of Christ.jpg, Flagellation (Karlsruhe) Master of the Karlsruhe Passion - Crowning with Thorns.jpeg, Crowning with Thorns (Karlsruhe) Master of the Karlsruhe Passion - Christ Carrying the Cross.jpeg, Carrying the Cross (Karlsruhe) Master of the Karlsruhe Passion - Disrobing of Christ.jpeg, Disrobing (Karlsruhe) Master of the Karlsruhe Passion - Nailing of Christ to the Cross.jpeg, Nailing to the Cross (Karlsruhe) The panels show their artist's special narrative, visual and symbolic language and include lower-class characters. Their interpretation of the Passion recalls the aims of the contemporary

Devotio Moderna Devotio Moderna (Latin; lit., Modern Devotion) was a movement for religious reform, calling for apostolic renewal through the rediscovery of genuine pious practices such as humility, obedience, and simplicity of life. It began in the late 14th-cen ...

, which recommended independent scriptural study and a personal relationship with God. The panels' narrative qualities are also new in Upper Rhenish art and influenced the development of painting in the region. A similarity in the rendering of the draperies links the Master of the Karlsruhe Passion to the

Master of the Drapery Studies The Master of the Drapery Studies (german: Meister der Gewandstudien), also known as Master of the Coburg Roundels (german: Meister der Coburger Rundblätter) is the notname given to the "very productive" and "multifaceted" late 15th-century aut ...

- the former may have taught the latter. The impact of the Master of the Karlsruhe Passion can be seen in Upper Rhenish art between around 1485 and 1500, particularly in artists active in Strasbourg. M. Roth: ''Strassburger Zeichnungen in der Nachfolge der Karlsruher Passion''. In: D. Lüdke et al.: Die Karlsruher Passion: ein Hauptwerk Straßburger Malerei der Spätgotik. Ostfildern 1996.

References

Bibliography

* L. Fischel: ''Die Karlsruher Passion und ihr Meister''. Karlsruhe 1952 * F. Blasius: ''Bildprogramm und Realität. Untersuchungen zur oberrheinischen Malerei um die Mitte des 15. Jahrhunderts am Beispiel der Karlsruher Passion''. Frankfurt 1986 (Dissertation) * D. Lüdke, Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe (Hrsg.): ''Die Karlsruher Passion: ein Hauptwerk Straßburger Malerei der Spätgotik'', (Katalog zur Ausstellung ''Die Karlsruher Passion'', Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe 1996). Ostfildern 1996 * W. Franzen: ''Die Karlsruher Passion und das „Erzählen in Bildern“. Studien zur süddeutschen Tafelmalerei des 15. Jahrhunderts''. Berlin 2002 (Dissertation)

External links

Die Karlsruher Passion
Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe {{Authority control (arts) 15th-century German painters Karlsruhe Passion Gothic painters Painters from Alsace