Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472-1553) was a German Renaissance painter and printmaker who served as court painter to the Elector of Saxony. He is known for his Reformation, secular and mythological paintings and portraits. He was born in Kronach, Germany , to an artist father . He was appointed to the court of Frederick the Wise in Wittenberg, where he provided Renaissance paintings, murals and decorations for various ducal residences in Wittenberg, West-Coburg and Torgau. Cranach was a friend of Martin Luther and is known for his Reformation, secular and mythological paintings and portraits.

Lucas Cranach Biography

• Born in Kronach , Germany in 1472
• Learned painting from his father
• In 1505 he became court painter at Wittenberg.
• He supported the Reformation movement and produced many portraits of Luther and his associates.
• He also works on mythological and allegorical themes.
• Died in Weimar on October 16, 1553 (aged 81)

Representative works

• Madonna and Child (c. 1510)
• "Portrait of Martin Luther" (c. 1520)
• "Venus and Cupid" (c. 1530)
• Stag Hunt (1529)

Cranach's style and achievements

Cranach's works are characterized by their detailed depictions, vivid colors, and skillful combination of religious, secular, and mythological themes. While influenced by the Italian Renaissance, he incorporated traditional elements unique to Germany and established his own unique style of painting.

His works on the subject of the Protestant Reformation visually expressed the ideas of Luther and contributed to the spread of the Protestant Reformation movement, while his mythological and allegorical works symbolically express human desire , beauty, and the power of nature.

As one of the most representative painters of the German Renaissance, Cranach's versatile talent and innovative expression had a major impact on the history of European art.