Georg Pencz

Georg Pencz (c. 1500 - 1550) was a German engraver, painter and printmaker. Pencz travelled to Nuremberg in 1523 and joined Albrecht Durer's atelier. Like Durer, he visited Italy and was profoundly influenced by Venetian art and it is believed he worked with Marcantonio Raimondi. In 1525, he was imprisoned with the brothers Barthel Beham and Hans Sebald Beham, the so-called "godless painters", for spreading the radical views of Thomas Muntzer by asserting disbelief in baptism, Christ and transubstantiation. The three were pardoned shortly afterwards and became part of the group known as the "Little Masters" because of their tiny, intricate and influential prints. Around 1539, Pencz briefly returned to Italy, visiting Rome for the first time, later to return to Nuremberg in 1540, where he became the city painter and earned his greatest success as a portraitist. As an engraver, he ranks among the best of the German "Little Masters". Notable prints include Six Triumphs of Petrarch and Life of Christ (26 plates). The best of his paintings are portraits, such as Portrait of a Young Man , Portrait of Marshal Schirmer and Portrait of Erhard Schwetzer and his wife.