Portrait of Ulrich Varnbiiler 1522

Albrecht Durer made this portrait of Ulrich Varnbiiler, using pen and ink on paper. Durer’s masterful strokes capture Varnbiiler's likeness, but also reveal much about the values of the time. The controlled, precise lines suggest not just artistic skill, but also the discipline valued in the burgeoning merchant class. The shading, meticulously applied, speaks to the labor and time investment that would have been admired by his patrons. We see labor and capital, hand-in-hand. Consider the paper itself, how it was made, pulped, and pressed—a commodity connecting the artist to a wider world of trade and manufacturing. The ink, too, painstakingly mixed and prepared. Durer's choice of humble materials elevates craft to high art, challenging the rigid hierarchies of his era. It is through this lens of making that we can fully appreciate the cultural and social significance of Durer's art.