Design for Shallow Round Dish on Three Legs 1500 - 1583

This is a design for a shallow round dish on three legs, made by Erasmus Hornick with pen and brown ink and gray wash in the 16th century. Hornick was a goldsmith, sculptor, designer, and printmaker. The image provides insight into the intricate designs sought after during the Northern Renaissance. The dish, elevated by ornate legs ending in animalistic paws, would have been a centerpiece, reflecting the wealth and status of its owner. The drawing would have been part of a larger system of design and production, typical of workshops. Hornick, working in the German-speaking lands, was at the intersection of artistic innovation and economic exchange. The creation of designs like this one depended on the social structures that gave rise to the patronage system. A deeper understanding of the image requires archival research into the networks of artists and patrons that supported the decorative arts in the 16th century. This image provides evidence of the social conditions in which art is created and consumed.