Stefan Lochner was a ‘Late Gothic’ artist and considered one of “the last great old masters of German Gothic art”. Born in 1410 and died 1451in Germany, Stefan was regarded as one of the finest painters of the “school of Cologne”, and had a soft oil painting style based off of Jan Van Eyck, Netherlandish art, and early Cologne school works, as well as a mystical religious theme.
His earliest work “The Last Judgement”(1435) was mellow and dark, but still held a strong sense of a climactic drama. After meeting Jan Van Eyck, the piece showing his new learning the best would be “Altarpiece of the Patron Saints of Cologne”(1445), as the colours feel more saturated and livelier than his older works with the usage of oil.
One of Stefan’s more famous and well recognized pieces is”Madonna in the Rose Bower”(1448), this piece shows off Stefan’s soft and bright style the best.
The last two pieces shows Stefan’s growth as an artist well, as the “Sts Anthony the Hermit, Cornelius and Mary Magdalen with a Donor”(1445) was painted in the middle of his career compared to “Saints Matthew, Catherine of Alexandria and John the Evangelist”(1445) which was one of his last works. The pieces are similar, yet different usage of mediums, colours and softer lines set them apart.
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