The beautiful immortal

Martin Schongauer was one of the most popular Germanic artists of the late Middle Ages - and one of the major figures of this period. Born in Colmar around 1445, Schongauer died in Alt-Breisach in 1491. He was the master of a painting workshop but was best known, even during his lifetime, for his engraving work. While his father and brothers were goldsmiths, he did not practise their craft; it is however likely that he learned to handle the burin in his father's workshop, a delicate art that he brought to the height of perfection. 

The exhibition presents a wide selection of his drawings and engravings and, for the first time, a near-complete collection of his paintings (altarpieces and easel paintings), including the 1473 Madonna of the Rose Bower, his only painting on panel whose date of creation is known. His works reveal a well-read artist with a penchant for fine, inventive storytelling and a skilful eye for natural subjects.

Martin Schongauer's engravings were widely circulated and appealed to generations of artists. Artworks from every discipline are brought together in the second half of the exhibition, hailing from all over the European continent and dating up to the start of the 17th century, attesting to the wide-ranging reception his work enjoyed.