The High Renaissance
 
&

Mannerism
 

 

Bartholomeus Spranger

(b Antwerp, 21 March 1546; d Prague, before 27 Sept 1611).

South Netherlandish painter, draughtsman, etcher and sculptor, active in Italy, Austria and Bohemia. With Hans von Aachen and Joseph Heintz, he was one of the most important artists at the Prague court of Emperor Rudolf II. He had a unique ability to combine the Netherlandish tradition and Italian influences, particularly the Roman brand of Mannerism, so as to achieve a style of his own that had a lasting influence on other artists in Prague. His sensually elegant yet intellectual paintings embody an ideal of beauty distinctive to the Rudolfine court.

 

Herakles und Omphale

 

Venus and Adonis
c. 1597