Ten Women from Stralsund

Melchior Lorck (Danish, 1526–1583)

1571-1573

Medium
Pen and brown ink
Classification
Drawing
Dimensions
height 222 mm, width 313 mm
Culture
Danish
Museum
SMK – National Gallery of Denmark
Rights
Public Domain Mark: SMK waives its rights in this photograph, as the museum states it.
Who can see it
Tweens profiles and older: its subjects are known and suit older children. How works are placed

View at the SMK – National Gallery of Denmark

About this work

Ten Women of Stralsund belongs to a group of drawings that were presumably done as studies for woodcuts for a projected book about the history of clothes. Ten women are lined up, showing attire from the 1600th century. The women’s poses allow Melchior Lorck to display their garb from all angles while also creating excellent rhythm within the composition. The history of the drawing The drawing is executed with precision in pen and brown ink. It was exhibited at the Department of Prints and Drawings in 1962 and subsequently bought from the English Evelyn Collection. The artist Lorck Lorck is the first artist of Danish origin whose artistic production is extensively documented. His connections with King Christian 3. (1503-1559) and the emperor Ferdinand 1. (1503-1564) took him far and wide in the world. Lorck recorded his impressions on paper. His circle of motifs was wide-ranging, spanning urban scenes, architecture, scenes of everyday life, and studies of clothes, weapons, tools, and portraits. Inspired by Cranahc and Dürer The drawings would later be translated into woodcuts and copperplates and published in books. Surviving drawings, woodcuts, and copperplates…