I just stumbled upon a gorgeous plate in a later German printing of Antonio de Guevara's work...
The Latin reads something like, "As long as it supports me, I proceeed in actions" (although 'actions' is a little awkward -- maybe there's a play on acta, "seashore," in the image as well; who knows). Antonio de Guevara, a sixteenth-century Spanish scholar, is most famous for his Libro áureo de Marco Aurelio (1528), which exploits a narrative of historical authenticity to make political claims.
Forget that, though -- look at that plate! While few would call it technically (or artistically) skilled, the image itself is so peaceful -- like a rowboat on a moonlit lake. The stiffness, common to so many illustrations I've come across in German books of the seventeenth century, actually works with the image in this case.
And it makes me want to get to the beach one last time...
The Latin reads something like, "As long as it supports me, I proceeed in actions" (although 'actions' is a little awkward -- maybe there's a play on acta, "seashore," in the image as well; who knows). Antonio de Guevara, a sixteenth-century Spanish scholar, is most famous for his Libro áureo de Marco Aurelio (1528), which exploits a narrative of historical authenticity to make political claims.
Forget that, though -- look at that plate! While few would call it technically (or artistically) skilled, the image itself is so peaceful -- like a rowboat on a moonlit lake. The stiffness, common to so many illustrations I've come across in German books of the seventeenth century, actually works with the image in this case.
And it makes me want to get to the beach one last time...
1 comment:
Hello Whitney,
What is the full title of this work? I'm not familiar with it as de Guevara's.
Post a Comment