Convivio delle Belle Donne, page 8 (verso) 1532

Nicolò Zoppino created this woodcut design, Convivio delle Belle Donne, sometime in the early 16th century. The print presents a stark contrast of black ink against the creamy page, composed of geometric patterns and stylized animal figures. The immediate impression is one of structured order, yet also playful invention. The artwork's dominant structure is its grid. This underlying framework organizes the entire composition, reducing complex forms into a series of uniform squares. Within this grid, Zoppino arranges a variety of motifs—birds, beasts, and floral elements, each rendered with a kind of pixelated abstraction. This technique anticipates modern digital art, while also nodding to the traditional craft of embroidery, suggesting a translation of textile patterns into print. This use of a grid and modular forms challenges fixed representation, pushing us to look beyond the mere image and consider the underlying structure. Is it a celebration of artifice? An exploration of how form shapes our perception? Zoppino invites us to decode the visual language of his time, reflecting on the interplay between nature and art, order and variation.