The Resurrection (n.d.)
Original title: The Resurrection
kurzbeschreibung
Christ rises from the tomb with arms raised, holding a staff of victory, surrounded by angels and clouds. Albrecht Dürer's woodcut The Resurrection, made around 1512, shows below him sleeping or dead guards in armor.
Description
Christ stands at the center, clothed in tunic and robe, encircled by a halo of rays. His arms are lifted, and in one hand he holds the victory staff. Angels hover in the clouds, underscoring the heavenly sphere. Along the bottom edge lie several armored figures in various poses—some on their backs, others on their stomachs. The layout is vertical, with a clear separation between the divine zone above and the earthly zone below.
Context
This woodcut belongs to Dürer's Passion series, created around 1512. During his mature period in Nuremberg, Dürer devoted himself intensively to printmaking. The Resurrection forms the final sheet of the series and illustrates the overcoming of death.
Impact
A solemn and triumphant mood emanates from the ascending figure of Christ and the bright clouds. The dark guards lying on the ground stand in strong contrast to Christ's luminous appearance, thus emphasizing the victory over death.
Technique
The scene fills the sheet with a pronounced vertical thrust, Christ rising at the center while the clustered figures and clouds extend to the edges in a tall, upright format. Fine parallel hatching carves the shadows and depth across the monochrome black-and-white surface, giving the dense composition its graphic clarity.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)