The eye of the artist: Hans Holbein's theory of art

Originalveröffentlichung in: Roskill, Mark (Hrsg.): Hans Holbein : paintings, prints and reception ; [proceedings of the Symposium "Hans Holbein:

Paintings, Prints, and Reception" ... held 21 - 22 november 1997 in Washington], New Haven, Conn. [u.a.] 2001, S. 141-153

J U R G E N M U L L E R

U n i v e r s i t a t H a m b u r g

The Eye of the Artist: Hans Holbein's Theory of Art

i

i. Hans Holbein the Younger, Lais Corinthiaca, 1526, panel

KLinstmuseum Basel, Offentliche Kunstsdmmlung

f w e compare the art of Hans Holbein w i t h that of Albrecht Diirer, it seems that Holbein, the artist f r o m Basel, hides himself in his work. In contrast to the Nuremberg master, Holbein left behind n o letters or theoretical writings, and the t w o artists were quite dif­

ferent also in their approaches to self-repre­

sentation. T h e few miniatures w e have from Holbein can hardly equal the distinction of Diirer's faithful likenesses of himself.

P r o m i n e n t a m o n g the art-historical ref­

erences related to H o l b e i n is the Apelles theme (the subject is integral to the story of Lais, discussed herein), of w h i c h the artist made repeated use.

He did so because to el­

evate painting to the standing of one of the liberal arts, it was necessary for artists of his day to engage in classical, h u m a n i s t dis­

course, especially through reference to Book 35 of Pliny's Natural History and the anec­

dotes told therein. A painter w h o wished to be noticed by the h u m a n i s t s was obliged to submit to a certain pressure of conformity regarding this particular source. It is help­

ful to keep in m i n d , however, the conflict implied by this subordination of painting to the classical theory of art. N o matter h o w m u c h friendship and goodwill the n a m e of Apelles calls forth, w e m u s t not forget the animosity humanists directed toward the art of painting.

In Erasmus especially we encounter an ex­

tremely ambiguous attitude toward the fine arts.

O n the one hand, he praised Diirer as

the Apelles of his time and thus affirmed the value of portrait painting; on the other, he passed m a n y polemical judgments on the fine arts in general.

In no less than four pas­

sages f r o m The Praise of Folly, Erasmus pointed to painting as a negative example.

A g a i n and again he spoke of the dangers that painting holds for the trusting believer:

it is the worship of saints and religious relics that leads to c o n f u s i n g a representation w i t h an archetype and causes Christians to

"adhere to a silly, yet pleasant superstition."

Painting, he claimed, is just another example of h o w the world w a n t s to be deceived, of h o w appearance is valued more than actual existence.

Erasmus' dialogue Ciceronianus of 1528 makes rhetorical use of the idea of the failed portrait. In it he compared the poor speaker, w h o limits himself mistakenly in his rhetoric to the sole ideal of Cicero, w i t h the portrait painter, w h o depicts his subject so inappro­

priately that he renders h i m ridiculous. In this context Erasmus delivered a lengthy discourse o n the principal l i m i t a t i o n s of every portrait; even the m o s t successful representation of a p e r s o n — o n e that m a n ­ ages to progress f r o m a mere likeness to the emotional affect and from there even to a p h y s i o g n o m i c a l rendering of character traits—can never be more than a dead image:

Let us assume that this [ideal speaker] is as adept in recreating Cicero as Zeuxis was in

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representing the female form. Zeuxis was able to depict his subject's features, complexion, age, even a suggestion of the feelings. It is this that demonstrates his supreme artistry—he could show grief, joy, anger, fear, attention, or boredom. Now the man who could offer all this surely realized the full potential of his art? As far as was possible, he transferred the form of the living person to the mute image.

Nor can we ask anything more of a painter.

You recognize the physical characteristics of the woman painted, you observe her age and feelings, possibly her state of health as well;

some artists, we are told, made it possible for a physiognomist to read off the character, habits, and life-span. But what an enormous amount of the real person is missing from the portrait! We find represented everything it is possible to ascertain from outermost layer, the skin. Yet man consists of soul as well as body, and we have very little even of one con­

stituent part, and the inferior one at that.

Erasmus opposed the notion of a portrait on the grounds that not o n l y are such images incapable of showing the internal organs of a person; they have even less capacity to re­

veal a h u m a n being's "special characteristics:

m i n d , i n t e l l i g e n c e , m e m o r y , and under­

standing."

T h e m u t e n e s s of the portrait becomes the true indicator of the "dead,"

imitative quality brought about by painting.

Near the end of this section in Ciceronianus is the story of an artist w h o s e attention to exact reproduction is so focused that he can n o longer differentiate between essential and nonessential. A t each sitting he m u s t change the painting because the subject has a n e w haircut or is wearing a n e w dress. If the person's external features are distorted b y illness, E r a s m u s c o n t i n u e d , t h e n the artist begins immediately to paint all the vis­

ible s y m p t o m s of the s i c k n e s s .

T h e example of this portrait painter, w h o m u s t make constant corrections to reflect what is occurring before his eyes, is intended to il­

lustrate graphically the unbridgeable gap between archetype and representation. W i t h this supposedly original episode of the por­

trait that cannot be c o m p l e t e d , Erasmus used the context of the history of philoso­

phy to transfer to painting Plato's realization, i n his Theaetetus, of the general l i m i t s of sense perception.

T h i s Platonic dialogue tells us that w h a t our senses tell us about

the w o r l d is subject to the l a w of constant change and thus cannot be valued as if it were the truth. In other words, Erasmus' aversion to painting is the consequence of his basic belief i n Plato, w h o thus b e c o m e s the agent of a Christian spiritual philosophy.

T h i s is especially clear in The Handbook of the Christian Solider, where Erasmus cited the allegory of the cave to underline the ambiguities i n the sensory i n f o r m a t i o n w e receive: ' T h e c r o w d are t h o s e [in Plato's cave] w h o , chained b y their o w n passions, m a r v e l at images of things as if they were true r e a l i t y . "

E r a s m u s used this locus classicus repeatedly in his w o r k s to depre­

cate the shadowy images of sense perception.

W h a t f o r m can Holbein's answer to this ve­

hement criticism take? What possibilities re­

m a i n for truth in painting?

W o r k i n g i n the tradition of early Nether­

landish precision, Holbein's painting meets the highest standards of realistic art. In­

deed, h e c o n v e y e d the impression that it is a genuine joy for h i m to d e m o n s t r a t e his t e c h n i c a l prowess. T h e r e is n o one w h o can portray m o r e c o n v i n c i n g l y fur, irides­

cent v e l v e t , transparent glass, and other surface textures that are difficult to paint.

In this context, w e could certainly point to the classical anecdote i n v o l v i n g the grapes of Z e u x i s ; h o w e v e r , such an e x a m p l e does not explain the problem of i l l u s i o n i s m (that is, c r e a t i n g t h e i l l u s i o n of reality), b u t rather f o r m u l a t e s i n very suggestive fash­

ion the image of perfect optical illusion, de­

scribing the result and not the precondition for t h i s realistic effect. W e are therefore c o m p e l l e d to ask w h a t it w a s that consti­

tuted for H o l b e i n seeing and rendering of the visible world. T o answer this question, our a t t e n t i o n m u s t be f o c u s e d o n t h o s e w o r k s of his that h a v e to be u n d e r s t o o d explicitly in an art-theoretical context. W e begin w i t h a m i n i a t u r e p a i n t i n g that fea­

tures a self-portrait of the artist

and then e x a m i n e t w o related images of Lais and Venus. T a k i n g the full range of H o l b e i n ' s w o r k s i n t o consideration, the selection of these three e x a m p l e s is c o m p e l l i n g , since they are the o n l y ones devoted explicitly to the t h e m e of painting. Most of his portraits convey o n l y an i m p l i c i t theory of art—that is to say, t h e y p r o v i d e a c o m m e n t a r y through inscriptions.

1 4 2 J. M U L L E R

The Duty of Painting

T h e self-portrait s h o w s H o l b e i n i n a three- quarter frontal view, l o o k i n g attentively at the observer. A t the left of his head, w h i c h occupies nearly the entire space of the paint­

ing and is covered w i t h a cap, w e see an H as w e l l as the year, is42; the age of the subject, 45, appears at the right. Accord­

i n g to t h e s e figures, the m i n i a t u r e w a s painted one year before the artist's death.

T h e letters and n u m b e r s are quite w o r n d o w n , however, and are not easily recog­

nizable. Furthermore, they do not appear to h a v e been e x e c u t e d w i t h any particular care, and the s a m e is true for the hands and the clothing. W i t h all power concen­

trated in the eyes, the face is the m o s t out­

standing part of the miniature. T h e varying thickness of the beard and the light eye­

b r o w s are precisely reproduced.

In his Schildei-Boeck of 1604, Karel van M a n d e r , t h e first art h i s t o r i a n to w r i t e about H o l b e i n ' s self-portraits, expressly praises their technique and craftsmanship:

" I have also seen t w o of his o w n portraits m a d e by h i m s e l f ; the one small and round, a miniature, very tiny but made very neatly and precisely and in the possession of the art-loving Jacques Razet; the other is a small face, perhaps about the size of the p a l m of a hand, excellently flesh-like in skin tones, subtly and precisely executed, that is in the possession of Bartholomaeus Ferreris w h o is m o s t devoted to art."

In the m o r e recent art-historical litera­

ture, the self-portrait (in Indianapolis) has caused controversy. W h i l e s o m e consider it to be authentic, others believe that it was copied. O n e scholar in particular attrib­

u t e s it to a " g o o d c o p y i s t " and l i n k s it to a self-portrait drawn i n 1543.

T h e Indi­

anapolis e x a m p l e s h o w s H o l b e i n h o l d i n g i n his hands a brush and paint dish. It is the p o s i t i o n of the hands and his intense gaze that characterize h i m as a painter. A s he l o o k s i n t o our eyes, he c o n v e y s the i m ­ pression that his attentive l o o k translates directly i n t o the act of painting. He regis­

ters each o b s e r v a t i o n i n a p a i n t i n g that w e are n o t able to see. In this sense, the portrait takes on a narrative c o n t e x t , as­

signing to the observer the role of artist's m o d e l .

Inasmuch as the entire composition is di­

rected toward highlighting the painter's eyes, its circular f o r m has the function of focus­

ing our attention o n w h a t is being repre­

sented. T h e hands of the artist, w h i c h are m o l d e d into the round format of the paint­

ing, create an imbalance that directs our v i e w upward, where it comes to rest finally on the eyes. Playing a major role in this process is the apparently inconspicuous lock of hair that curls in at the level of the eyes.

It terminates the d y n a m i c circular m o v e ­ m e n t in Holbein's left pupil, w h i c h is lo­

cated almost precisely on the central verti­

cal axis of the painting. It is difficult to imagine a more pronounced accentuation of the artist's gaze. A visual analogy is thus created between the format of the portrait and the circle of the pupil, turning the act of seeing i n t o the m a i n t h e m e and m a k i n g Holbein the representative of the sense of sight. In this connection, it can hardly be ac­

cidental that the letters of the monogram are located approximately at the level of the eyes, w h i l e the numbers indicating the year and the age of the artist are on a line with the m o u t h . It seems to m e important also that w h i l e Holbein exploited the instability and dynamic aspect of the circular form,

he fit­

ted an equilateral triangle into the circle to steady the composition.

A s we consider the classification and tech­

nique of this painting, it appears that Hol­

bein's choice of scale for his o w n portrait is quite deliberate. T h e small format empha­

sizes the aspect of diligence—the attentive- ness and technical skill of the artist. Indeed, w e recognize here a w e l l - k n o w n observa­

tion that equates the degree of craftsman­

ship w i t h the ability to reverse the relation­

ship between massive and d i m i n u t i v e — f o r instance, w h e n an elephant is painted on a nutshell. T h e m i n i a t u r e thus is not just an easily transportable portrait but rather an in­

dication of the power of painting to repre­

sent s o m e t h i n g great w i t h i n s o m e t h i n g small. Furthermore, the art-historical dimen­

sion of the m e d i u m c o m e s into play. O i l painting is considered after all to be a nova reperta, one of those latter-day inventions that expresses the superiority of the m o d - erni over the antiqui and conveys in the broadest sense the idea of the Aemulatio veterum.

I. M U L L E R I 4 3

Realism as National Character

While the miniature has never received a thorough interpretation, the drawing in the Uffizi has been the subject of a number of investigations.

It is described thus in a passage from a catalogue accompanying an exhibition in Basel in i960: "Although not well conserved, it is entirely convincing in its statement about the artist, through whose work the idea of death weaves itself like a brightly colored thread. The eyes can not be fooled; it is a knowing gaze, at the age of forty-five a shockingly uncompromising gaze."

This comment is symptomatic of a certain art-historical, hermeneutic state of mind. Associated with the idea of death equated with a brightly colored thread are definite themes such as the Dead Christ and naturally representations of the Dance of Death. Furthermore, the Basel catalogue characterizes the artistic peculiarity of Hol­

bein in stating that the "uncompromising gaze" reveals a Renaissance artist whose purpose is not to transform the fact of our finite nature but rather to force it hero­

ically. Corresponding to face this view, Hol­

bein's realism is understood here less as an ideal technique of precise painting and more as a brutal frankness in his mode of representation.

This sort of interpretation has a long tra­

dition. At the beginning of his life of Holbein, Van Mander named works of the artist that are accessible to the public. He mentioned a painted Dance of Death that could be seen

"at the town hall" as well as a "little book­

let" illustrating the same subject.

These works appear in retrospect to be the fateful circumscription of Holbein's life as a painter, as though he anticipated with them his own death. They also take on a special meaning in the biography insofar as Van Mander dra­

matically highlighted the theme of the artist's death at the end of the narrative of Holbein's life: "When at last Holbeen had brought much enrichment to the world with his noble art—since human life on earth, like all worldly objects and transient things, dissolve away to nothing and must perish and come to an inevitable, irrevokable end—

then Holbeen died in great pain of the plague in London at 56 years of age in 1554, by which he left his body to decompose and

decay but his praiseworthy reputation and fame to human posterity in immortal re­

membrance."

Van Mander's biography contains valuable insights relating to the twentieth-century appropriation of Holbein as a German artist whose realistic work corresponds to a certain national character. In order not to weaken Holbein's northern European identity, Van Mander claimed that he was never in Italy.

When we then read Federigo Zuccaro's re­

ported comment to Hendrick Goltzius that he would value the art of Holbein more than that of Raphael, it becomes clear to the reader that northern European and Italian painting are on an equal footing.

Significantly, Holbein's miniature self- portrait shows the artist about to paint with his right hand, although it has been proven that he was left-handed. In my view this cannot be considered a mechanical conse­

quence of a mirror-image reversal, but rather the Active use of the right hand expresses the degree of truth in the painting.

Holbein's self-portrait conveys a unity, or insepar­

ability of theory (in the sense of intuition) from practice (in the sense of execution).

The spatial proximity of eye and hand brought about through the narrow confines of the circular format, and above all the right hand of the artist upheld in action—

these elements suggest that for him seeing and representing are directly connected. The act of seeing leads immediately to the hand that paints.

The hand paints and "handles," the head interprets and thinks. What, however, does the eye do? To what realm does it belong? Is it the active-practical one or the intuitive- theoretical one? Is seeing a passive act of enduring the world or rather an active in­

terpretation of it? Is seeing a continual tran­

sition from something inside to something outside? Is the perception of images a means to knowledge or knowledge itself? In what fundamental way do thinking and seeing re­

late to each other?

Lai's of Corinth, or the Prominence of Sight over Thought

The oval and evenly formed face of Lais (fig. 1) is of immaculate beauty: the small but full mouth, the straight nose, the well-

1 4 4 T. M U L L E R

proportioned eyebrows, the high forehead, and the w h i t e skin are nearly perfect. Her hair is portrayed as a cap of gold threads. T h e figure extends her right hand toward the ob­

server and above a line of written characters i n classical capitals, w h i c h give the iden­

tity of the person represented and the date of the painting: Lais Coiinthiaca 1526. T h e charm of this famous hetaera, or courtesan, is especially engaging. Her head is turned slightly to the right, and her eyelids are low­

ered so that her gaze passes to one side of the observer. In a gesture both graceful and ele­

gant, her left hand holds the heavy blue ma­

terial of her clothing. She is wearing an ex­

quisite dress, w h i c h seems like the elegant wrapping of a precious object.

T h e pyramidal structure of Holbein's com­

position and the strong optical illusion in the representation of the figure create a degree of m o n u m e n t a l i t y that contrasts w i t h the actual size of the picture (35.6 x 26.7 cm).

T h e format compels the observer to m o v e closer to the painting, almost encouraging us to take the panel i n our hands to study the technical brilliance it reveals and mar­

vel at its enamel-like effect and luminosity.

Consequently, even before the viewer real­

izes the nature of the painting's iconographic character, the question arises as to whether it represents a theoretical, art-historical manifestation, a so-called artistic trick serv­

ing as proof of the artist's superior techni­

cal mastery. Before proceeding to e x a m i n e h o w the painting functions in the sense of a theatrical-casting assignment, focusing attention on the desire of the male observer, let us take note of the contradiction of the simultaneous innocence and cunning of the hetaera. T h e figure of Lais was so f a m o u s a m o n g classical h u m a n i s t s that she can be considered as a standard literary m o d e l . A u l u s G e l l i u s wrote in his Nodes Atticae that because the hetaera charged more than princely s u m s for her services, n o t every m a n could gain access to her. T h i s , he said, was the origin of the c o m m o n proverb ' N o t every m a n m a y fare to Corinth town,' for in v a i n w o u l d any m a n go to Corinth to visit Lais w h o could not pay her price.

Even Demosthenes, so the story continues, w h e n faced w i t h the d e m a n d of ten t h o u s a n d drachmas, turned away and said: "I w i l l not buy regret at such a price!" T h e c o m m o n el­

ement in all tales about the famous hetaera is the reference to the infinite power of her beauty, w h i c h threatens to overcome even the philosophers.

H o w distant Holbein's conception of his painting was from the standard n o r m s of classical art theory becomes clear w h e n w e draw for contrast on Leon Battista Alberti's Delia Pittura. T h e Italian humanist wrote at the beginning of the third book of this w o r k that moral decency is a better means of se­

curing the goodwill of fellow citizens than is mere industriousness or technical crafts­

manship. T h i s approbation, or benevolenza di molti, helps the artist to gain fame as w e l l as m o n e y ,

b u t he m u s t first h a v e moral integrity; o n l y a virtuous p e r s o n — according to Alberti's essay—can also be a great artist. T o m a k e this argument more c o n v i n c i n g , the author called o n the au­

thority of classical antiquity by referring to the Greek painter-philosopher Pamphilos, who, it was said, educated noble young m e n and gave them their first instruction in paint­

ing. T h i s short passage from Delia Pittura makes clear h o w Alberti attempted to elevate painting above craftsmanship and stylize it as a fine art.

W h e n w e weigh the evidence resulting from his investigations, w e see that Alberti focused his attention on the ancient texts dealing w i t h painting in a very narrow fash­

ion. His choice of literary sources was vir­

tually determined by a kind of " m o r a l i t y filter." For this reason, such episodes as those f r o m Pliny's Natural History that re­

late the tale of the ancient painter Timanthes (who painted obscene pictures on little pan­

els as a kind of audacious joke to entertain himself) had to be omitted. Likewise, there is n o mention of the emperor Gaius, w h o be­

c a m e i n f l a m e d w i t h lust w h e n he saw a painting of the naked Helen. N o t only did Alberti r e m a i n silent about such manifest indelicacies,- he also chose to pass over any reference to even a mere weakness of char­

acter i n a painter from the ancient era. For instance, the arrogant scoundrel Parrhasios was referred to reservedly by Alberti as a master of the contour line. T h u s it is al­

m o s t a foregone conclusion that the erotic m y t h of the invention of painting w o u l d be reinterpreted allegorically or historically:

Alberti did not tell the tale of the potter

J. M U L L E R I 4 5

Butades' daughter, w h o drew the outline of her lover's shadow, but rather stated s i m p l y that the first painters copied the shadows of people and that this was the beginning of the art of painting. T h e story of Narcissus, which received a similarly censored interpretation, was used to prove that painting is the flower among the arts. There is not a single refer­

ence in Delia Pittura bringing artists i n t o relation w i t h their material and sensual needs, something that was quite c o m m o n in the tradition of ancient Greece.

The Honorable Art of Procuration

T h e Holbein panel in question has to be in­

terpreted from an understanding of art c o m ­ pletely different from that of Alberti. T h e m o s t significant source of i n f o r m a t i o n to elucidate the portrait of the beautiful hetaera is the late-classical author Athenaeus, w h o described Lais of C o r i n t h as so beautiful that artists came from far away to paint her breasts and upper body. Athenaeus related further that the artist A p e l l e s discovered her w h e n she was still a child, drawing water from a well. I m m e d i a t e l y after this discov­

ery he t o o k her to a banquet, w h e r e his friends chided h i m for not having brought a professional courtesan. He replied quite self- assuredly: " D o n ' t be surprised; for I want to s h o w y o u that her beauty is a promise of e n j o y m e n t to c o m e in less, altogether, than three years."

It is remarkable h o w matter-of-factly the artist's role as a purveyor is mentioned here.

Just as the artist endows nature w i t h grace and charm, fashioning it in such a w a y that the h u m a n senses are aroused,

Apelles' task consists of presenting the young w o m a n to his friends i n the m o s t attractive w a y possible. T h a t the concept of the artist-pro­

curer is not so scandalous after all is evident in Xenophon's Symposium, describing a dis­

cussion during w h i c h all the participants are asked to n a m e the skill that they are most proud of. Socrates wrinkles his brow in dignified furrows and answers: " O f m y tal­

ent for procuring."

In response to the gen­

eral laughter f r o m the others present, he says that he w o u l d earn a lot of m o n e y if he were to m a k e use of this talent. W h e n Socrates defines the qualities of a good pro­

curer, he points to the ability to arouse m u ­

tual s y m p a t h y i n the w o m a n or m a n for w h o m the service of procurement is being carried out.

What Is Beauty Worth?:

Lais of Corinth as an Allegory of Painting T h e theme of Holbein's painting is not mere prostitution but rather the pricelessness of the y o u n g w o m a n ' s beauty. Paradoxically, even as the right hand of the courtesan self- confidently requests more m o n e y , an effect almost of innocence is suggested by the har­

m o n i o u s features of her face, eyelids d o w n ­ cast. T h i s irony can be confirmed by focus­

ing on the depiction of the gold coins, w h i c h are painted in a very abridged fashion. W h i l e the other elements of the painting are care­

f u l l y observed and reproduced i n differen­

tiated detail, the pieces of gold receive o n l y a schematic representation: the gold looks like tin! A n d thus w e learn that w h e n faced w i t h pricelessness versus marketability of beauty, H o l b e i n t o o k a decisive position.

T h e longer w e v i e w the picture, the m o r e w e are captivated by the contrast between the cheap, shabby image of the m o n e y and the extravagantly beautiful figure of Lais.

T h e theoretical problem of beauty's w o r t h being incalculable is w o n d e r f u l l y resolved i n H o l b e i n ' s artistic staging of the w o r k . H o w effectively the solicitous hand gesture of Lais heightens the m o m e n t of decision for the client, w h o m u s t either pay or risk that she w i l l get up and leave! T h a t risk becomes even m o r e evident w h e n w e notice that her left hand has already taken h o l d of her skirt.

Furthermore, the position of her body, lead­

ing to the background, and the open curtain to the right both indicate that at the next in­

stant she c o u l d vanish. Seen in this con­

text, her outstretched hand seems not o n l y to solicit but also to demand: the visitor either pays the s u m requested or receives n o t h i n g at all.

In this respect the conduct of Lais is no dif­

ferent f r o m that of other c o u r t e s a n s . In A l k i p h r o n ' s letters of courtesans w e read the following passage written by P h i l u m e n e to her suitor Kriton: " W h a t use are y o u r endless scribblings and your complaining? In a word: fifty pieces of gold is what I m u s t have. I don't need any letters. If y o u love me, fine, then present m e w i t h gifts,- but if y o u

1 4 6 J . M U L L E R

are a s k i n f l i n t , t h e n leave m e i n peace.

Farewell."

T h i s reply of the courtesan, as imperti­

nent as it is self-assured, could be applied also to the realm of painting: the picture of Lais can be read as w a r n i n g potential col­

lectors of Holbein's art under n o circum­

stances to be stingy, otherwise the beauty of his painting w i l l forever remain hidden to them. A t any rate, his painted jest makes sense above all for an artist, and thus it is difficult to imagine that the picture could have been a commissioned work. Perhaps it was a k i n d of studio joke that H o l b e i n in­

vented to present his skill as a painter face­

tiously. T h e way in w h i c h he formulated his theoretical statement is reminiscent of Eras­

m u s ' stylistic device of the serio-ludere, whereby a serious subject is presented in a jocular and w i t t y m a n n e r .

A h u m a n i s t v i e w i n g the painting of Lais w o u l d have seen an ensemble, rich in associations, of q u e s t i o n s a n d a r t i s t i c s e l f - a s s e s s m e n t s , w h i l e a s i m p l e client of the painter w o u l d h a v e seen above all a v e r i f i c a t i o n of the artist's technical skill i n painting.

A l t h o u g h Holbein declined to sign other paintings, the fact that he did so in the case of Lais has a particular meaning. T h e ques­

tion about the origin of the w o r k leads in­

evitably to the answer that Apelles is the

"creator" of Lais and therefore the one to w h o m w e o w e t h a n k s for this painting.

T h r o u g h Lais, the beloved of Apelles, is re­

vealed Holbein's artistic a m b i t i o n to be the greatest painter of his time: "Look, here I am, the Apelles of m y generation!" A t the same time, the painting expresses the superiority of beauty perceived through the senses over discursive language. T h a t the Lais panel is a work derived from Apelles is not to be read but rather sensed. In this case, seeing is not just the m e a n s to knowledge, but the ac­

tual goal. T h e charm of this y o u n g w o m a n can be experienced o n l y through the visual mode. T h i s same primacy of seeing can be found also in anecdotal form in The Deipno- sophistae of Athenaeus. I m m e d i a t e l y fol­

lowing the passage describing Apelles as the real discoverer of Lais, is a reference to Socrates speaking of the i m p o s s i b i l i t y of defining the beauty of a courtesan. W i t h this assertion he reveals his v i e w that gen­

uine beauty lies beyond discursive language

and remains in the realm of direct visual perception. " W e must go to see the w o m a n , "

Socrates says, "for it is not possible to judge her beauty b y hearsay."

In concluding the discussion of this paint­

ing, let m e s u m m a r i z e m y interpretation of it. T h e c h a r m of the beautiful courtesan cannot be grasped by thought but can be e x p e r i e n c e d o n l y b y v i e w i n g . H o l b e i n ' s painting of Lais represents a brief for sensual seduction. Like an attractive painting, the courtesan is for sale and offers herself to anyone w h o can pay for her. This means also that the o n l y m a n w h o w i l l be able to pos­

sess the fleeting beauty, always on the verge of departing, is the one w h o is generous enough to take advantage of it.

Fascinatio or the Charm of Painting A similar interpretation could be applied to Holbein's painting of Venus (fig. 2). Here again, in his portrayal of the goddess of love, H o l b e i n was concerned w i t h the power of painting, in the sense of the o v e r w h e l m i n g force of sensual beauty. T h e arrow of Cupid, as w e l l as the direct gaze of Venus, is a m e t a p h o r for the sense of sight. " E v e r y love," Ficino wrote i n his c o m m e n t a r y on Plato's Symposium, "begins after all w i t h seeing. . . . Is it therefore any wonder that w h e n the eye, open and w i t h a t t e n t i o n firmly focused on someone, lets fly the ar­

rows of its rays, w h i c h are the vehicle of the spirits of life, towards the eyes of the on­

looker, it also at the same t i m e radiates the vapor that we call the spirit of life? From this point the poisonous arrow pierces the eye, and because it comes f r o m the heart of the one w h o shot it, it also pierces the heart of the one it h i t s . "

T h u s w e h a v e v i s i o n to t h a n k for falling i n love and for our reason being o v e r c o m e b y sensuality. W h a t is celebrated in Venus with Cupid, however, is not so m u c h sin­

cere love as the power of the sense of sight, w h i c h compels fascination.

A l t h o u g h w e w o u l d t h i n k that Ficino's De amoie repre­

sents a c o m p l e t e l y idealistic piece of writ­

ing, there is in fact in this c o m m e n t a r y to Plato's Symposium an entirely materialis­

tic explanation of falling in love as a kind of infectious disease transmitted through the eyes, f o l l o w i n g a theory of e m i s s i o n s

J. M U L L E R 147

related to visual rays. W e m u s t conclude, after c o m p a r i n g portrayals of V e n u s and Lais, that b o t h paintings f u n c t i o n i n the sense of a role-casting exercise as they focus on the theme of the male observer's desires.

W e find ourselves on the w o r l d l y side of the desired objects, the prospects for at­

tainment of w h i c h appear in each case to be quite different. In contrast to Lais, Venus di­

rects her gaze to bring her into contact w i t h the observer; holding Cupid's shoulder w i t h her left hand, she restrains the impetuous in­

fant, w h o is about to c l i m b over the top of the wall and into the realm of the viewer.

L i k e the outstretched, soliciting hand of Lais, w h i c h effectively pierces the boundary of the painting, Cupid's arrow makes contact w i t h the space beyond the picture frame. It also indicates the depth of the e n c l o s u r e — a barrier—that, viewed from above, seems easily o v e r c o m e . A t the s a m e t i m e , the unique perspective renders the wall between the painting and onlooker m o r e permeable than in Lais, where the frontal view halts us w i t h the inscription written on the side fac­

ing us. Simple though it appears for C u p i d to go over this barrier, if he were not held back by Venus, it w o u l d be just as easy for the spectator to s u r m o u n t it from the other direction.

Yet another factor distinguishing the two paintings involves the p h y s i o g n o m i c por­

trayal. Consistent with the gesture of Venus' outstretched hand, more an invitation than a demand, is her facial expression: as op­

posed to Lai's, w h o appears majestic to the point of being unapproachable, Venus looks a little mischievous. Notwithstanding their differences, Lais and V e n u s have obvious similarities. U n l i k e Holbein's self-portrait, w h i c h demonstrates the unity of theory and practice, these two panels represent a de­

fense of painting as a seduction of the senses;

i n their iconographic aspects, they even seem to plead for a revaluation of seeing, placing it above theory.

Appearance versus Reality

T h e paintings interpreted so far s h o w ex­

plicitly Holbein's self-confidence and his re­

liance on the preeminent power of painting and the sense of sight. T h e situation be­

comes more complex if w e leave for the m o ­

m e n t this particular art-historical context and take into consideration a point of v i e w put forth by H a n s Blumenberg, w h o sees the incongruence of appearance and reality as a crucial factor in our m o d e r n under­

standing of the world. In ancient times and during the Middle Ages, the horizon of vis­

ibility coincided w i t h that of reality, w h i l e i n the m o d e r n era they have b e c o m e in­

creasingly dissociated.

T h e visual reality of our natural perceptions can w i t h o u t a doubt be precisely reproduced through paint­

ing; this reality is, however, the consequence of certain optical conditions.

W e can thus assume that in the art of Holbein there occurred a process of s i m u l ­ taneous revaluation and devaluation con­

cerning the perceptual possibilities of paint­

i n g — a process quite typical for the early modern era. T o give at least an indication of what it could have meant for Holbein, w e m u s t turn our attention to a detail from The Ambassadois (fig. 3). O n the lower shelf of the etagere we recognize a globe of the world.

It is located on a vertical axis of the paint­

ing, directly b e l o w the celestial globe on the upper shelf. (Perhaps this is an allusion to the influence of the stars on the sublunary world, a matter that need not concern us fur­

ther.) T h e globe has a w o o d handle attached to it at the point of the northern polar circle, allowing an observer to pick it up and study it. Lines of longitude and latitude are recog­

nizable as are s o m e c o n t i n e n t s — E u r o p e , w h i c h is particularly highlighted by color, and Africa,- A m e r i c a cannot be precisely identified.

O n e year prior to the execution of The Ambassadors, H o l b e i n had c o m p l e t e d a picture of the world like this one. In 1532, to illustrate Novus Oibis Regionum he pro­

duced a w o o d c u t (fig. 4) that reveals the world in the form then known. Even with the cannibal m y t h s reproduced along the edges and sea n y m p h s in the oceans, the m a p still provides a precise geographic vision, con­

sistent w i t h its time. A d o c u m e n t such as this reminds us of the paradoxes that have resulted from the realization that the world is round. T h e globe in Holbein's Ambas­

sadors underscores the reality that w e are m o v i n g on the surface of a sphere whose absolute center w e can never reach.

W e sail to the east and end up in the west. A n d

1. M U L L E R 1 4 9

3. H a n s Holbein the Younger, The Ambassadors, 1533, oil on panel

National Gallery, London

although the surface of the earth represents a finite plane, this sphere is for humankind an illusory, boundless form without begin­

ning or end. We never reach the edge of the world, since the horizon simply shifts and al­

lows us to go farther.

A heliocentric concept of the world, in which the earth revolves simultaneously around its own axis and around the sun, has immense consequences for an artist. Such a view of the world points to the uncertainty of natural perception. From now on we can no longer trust our eyes,- we walk on a planet that moves without our noticing it. In the same way, we move over a curved surface whose convex shape we cannot recognize.

And although it does not correspond to the

objective truth, each day we witness the sun going up and down, we seem to be see­

ing an immovable earth while the other planets are moving. The evidence and ob­

jectivity of the world are the consequence of invisible events. Brightness as a precondition for visibility is the result of an astronomi­

cal constellation that changes during the course of the day. Even as the special opti­

cal effects of anamorphosis prove how sense perception is bound to a specific location, these effects expose the naivete of realistic models that attempt to explain how the world exists.

From another perspective, viewing Hol­

bein's most famous painting confirms that our reason is able to recognize things that

1 5 0 r. M U L L E R

4. Hans Holbein the Younger and Sebastian Miinster, Map of the World, woodcut, from Novus Orbis Regionum (Basel, 1532) Kunstmuseum Basel, Offentlichc KtinStsammlung

it cannot see. T h e floor under the etagere in The Ambassadors represents an ideal geo­

metric figure that, although o n l y partially visible, can be m a d e w h o l e in the m i n d . T h e r e is n o h i a t u s b e t w e e n seeing and t h i n k i n g ; seeing is intelligible, as seeing and k n o w i n g merge w i t h one another con­

tinually. Seeing, as it becomes clear to the v i e w e r of these p a i n t i n g s , m e a n s inter­

preting. W e cannot k n o w for certain w h i c h of the w o r k s that H o l b e i n illustrated actu­

ally influenced him, nor do we k n o w which, if any, concrete theoretical point of v i e w he

encountered there attracted h i m . It is o n l y very recently, since the publication of Chris­

tian Midler's catalogue of Holbein's graphic works, that w e have gained an impression of the artist's n u m e r o u s illustrations for technical and scientific w o r k s of his day.

N o t w i t h s t a n d i n g the present uncertainty, w e can assume that these c o m m i s s i o n s and the a c c o m p a n y i n g necessary study of the w o r k s to be i l l u s t r a t e d w o u l d assuredly have exerted s o m e effect on H o l b e i n — a n influence and correlation deserving of fur­

ther study.

r . M U L L E R 1 5 1

NOTES

This paper is dedicated to Horst Bredekamp.

This paper was translated from the German by Richard W. Pettit, Washington, D.C.

1. Oskar Batschmann and Pascal Griener: "Holbein—

Apelles, Wettbewerb und Definition des Kiinstlers,"

Zeitschrift fur Kunstgeschichte, 57 (1994), 626-650.

See also Batschmann and Griener, Hans Holbein (Cologne, 1997; English trans., Princeton, 1997), chap. E.

2. See, in this regard, Jiirgen Miiller: "Von der Odyssee eines christlichen Gelehrten: Eine neue Interpretation von Hans Holbeins Erasmusbildnis in Longford Castle," Zeitschrift des deutschen Vereins fiir Kunstwissenschaft, 49/50(1995-1996), 179-211.

3. Concuring with this view, Erwin Panofsky wrote:

"Like most Northern humanists Erasmus was primarily interested in the written word and only secondarily in the world accessible to the eye." See

"Erasmus and the Visual Arts," Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 38 (1969), 200-227, esp. 204.

4. Panofsky 1969, 224-226.

5. Desiderius Erasmus, Moriae encomium (first published in 1511). For the passages in question, see Erasmus of Rotterdam, Das Lob der Torheit, with illustrations by Hans Holbein, trans, and ed. Uwe Schultz (1979,- reprint, Frankfurt am Main, 1994), 78-79; and Panofsky 1969, 207-208.

6. Desiderius Erasmus, Dialogus Ciceronianus, trans, and annot. Betsy I. Knott as "The Ciceronian:

A Dialogue on the Ideal Latin Style," in vol. 28 (1974) of Collected Works of Erasmus, ed. John W.

O'Malley (Toronto, Buffalo, and London, 1974-1993), 374-376.

7. In vol. 28 (1974) of Collected Works, 375.

8. This short passage in the Ciceronianus (Erasmus

l974, 375-376) may have its origin in a concrete biographical context. On 30 May 1517 Erasmus wrote from Antwerpen to Thomas More relating that an artist, Quentin Massys, could not complete the portrait of himself (Erasmus) that was in progress because an illness had so changed his outward appearance. See The Correspondence of Erasmus . . . i$r6 to 1517, trans. Roger A. B. Mynors and Douglas F. S. Thomson, annot. fames K. Monica, in vol. 4 (1977) of Collected Works, letter 584, 368.

9. The Theatetus of Plato, trans. M. J. Levett (Glasgow, 1928), esp. 97-105.

10. Desiderius Erasmus, Enchiridion Militis Christiani (written in 1501; Basel, 1514), trans.

Charles A. Fantazzi as The Handbook of a Christian Soldier, vol. 66 (1988) of Collected Works, 86.

11. The most complete investigation into Holbein's miniatures is that in Stephanie Buck, Holbein am Hofe Heinrichs VIII (Berlin, 1997).

12. The Lives of the Illustrious Netherlandish and German Painters, trans, a n d intro. H e s s e l M i e d e m a ( D o o r n s p i j k , 1994), 1 5 2 - 1 5 3 .

13. J o h n R o w l a n d s , Holbein: The Paintings of Hans Holbein the Younger, ( O x f o r d , 1985), 235. N o t w i t h­

s t a n d i n g the fact that t h e U f f i z i d r a w i n g is dated 1542 a n d the I n d i a n a p o l i s m i n i a t u r e bears t h e date is 42, t h e f o r m e r has b e e n c o n s i d e r e d b y m a n y t o be a p r e l i m i n a r y s t u d y for t h e latter.

14. For t h e classical origin of the circular f o r m a t for portraits, see R o l f W i n k e s , Clipeata imago: Studien zu einer romischen Bildform (Bonn, 1969I, 1 8 4 - 1 8 8 .

15. T h e drawing, m e a s u r i n g 23 x 18 c m , a n d is n o t i c e a b l y larger t h a n the p a i n t i n g , w a s p u r c h a s e d b y C a r d i n a l L e o p o l d o de' M e d i c i i n 1714 for t h e gallery of self-portraits i n the U f f i z i . E v e n t u a l l y h u n g n e x t to oil p a i n t i n g s in Florence, t h e d r a w i n g w a s a p p a r e n t l y c o l o r e d so that it c o u l d c o m p a r e f a v o r a b l y w i t h the w o r k s s u r r o u n d i n g it.

16. Die Malerfamilie Holbein in Basel [exh. cat., K u n s t m u s e u m Basel] (Basel, i 9 6 0 ) , 277, n o . 323.

17. M i e d e m a 1994, 42. For t h e literary h i s t o r y of t h i s b o o k ' s r e c e p t i o n , see B a t s c h m a n n and G r i e n e r 1997, 1 9 4 - 2 0 9 .

18. M i e d e m a 1994, 154. 1936, 95. For V a n M a n d e r ' s

" n a t i o n a l " m o t i v a t i o n , see Jurgen M i i l l e r , Concordia Pragensis: Ein Beitrag zur Rhetorisierung von Kunst und Leben am Beispiel der rudolfinischen

Hofkiinstler, C o l l e g i u m C a r o l i n u m , vol. 77 ( M u n i c h , 1993)

19. See, i n t h i s c o n n e c t i o n , M a r t i n W a r n k e , " D e r K o p f i n der H a n d , " i n Zauber der Medusa: Euro- paische Manierismen, ed. W e r n e r H o f m a n n [exh.

cat., K i i n s t l e r h a u s , V i e n n a ) ( V i e n n a , 1987), 5 5 - 6 1 . 20. For a general t r e a t m e n t of t h e c o u r t e s a n portrait i n t h e R e n a i s s a n c e , see E l i z a b e t h C r o p p e r , " O n B e a u t i f u l W o m e n : P a r m i g i a n i n o , P e t r a r c h i s m o a n d t h e V e r n a c u l a r S t y l e , " Art Bulletin 58 (1976), 3 7 4 - 3 9 4 -

21. A u l u s G e l l i u s ( R o m a n , S e c o n d c e n t u r y ) , Noctes Atticae, 1.8.3-6; trans. J o h n G . R o l f e as The Attic Nights of Aulus Gellius ( L o n d o n , 1927), 1 : 4 2 - 4 5 . 22. " E t n i u n o d u b i t a la b e n e v o l e n z a di m o l t i m o l t o all? artefice giovare a lode i n s i e m e at al g u a d a g n i o , "

f r o m L e o n Battista A l b e r t i , " D e l i a p i t t u r a . . . libri t r e , " i n Leone Battista Albertis kleinere kunsttheo- retische Schriften, ed. H u b e r t J a n i t s c h e k ( V i e n n a , 1877), 1 4 2 - 1 4 3 . See also D . R . E d w a r d W r i g h t ,

" A l b e r t i , De Pictura: Its Literary S t r u c t u r e a n d P u r p o s e , " fournal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 47 (1984), 5 2 - 7 1 .

23. A t h e n a e u s of N a u k r a t i s ( G r e e k sophist, s e c o n d century), Deipnosophistae 13.588, trans. C h a r l e s B u r t o n G u l i k ( C a m b r i d g e , M a s s . , and L o n d o n , 1937), 6:173. Later ( 1 3 . 5 9 0 - 5 9 1 ) A t h e n a e u s described h o w A p e l l e s u s e d the hetaera P h r y n e as m o d e l for h i s p a i n t i n g of A p h r o d i t e e m e r g i n g f r o m the s e a - f o a m . The Deipnosophists is a w o r k in the s y m p o s i u m t r a d i t i o n that has been h a n d e d d o w n i n i n c o m p l e t e

form,- t h e m o s t l i k e l y source c o n s u l t e d b y H o l b e i n , or t h e h u m a n i s t a d v i s i n g h i m , w o u l d h a v e b e e n t h e e d i t i o n in G r e e k p u b l i s h e d b y A l d u s M a n u t i u s (Venice, 1514).

24. W e t h i n k i n s t i n c t i v e l y of the special artistic e n d o w m e n t of A p e l l e s , w h o s e art w a s o b v i o u s l y d i s t i n g u i s h e d b y grace and c h a r m . N o o t h e r artist w a s able to portray as c o n v i n c i n g l y the specific c h a r m of f e m i n i n e beauty. In t h i s c o n t e x t P l i n y the Elder p r o v i d e d the f o l l o w i n g s t a t e m e n t a b o u t A p e l l e s : " T h e grace of h i s g e n i u s r e m a i n e d q u i t e u n r i v a l l e d , a l t h o u g h the v e r y greatest painters w e r e l i v i n g at t h e t i m e . H e w o u l d a d m i r e their w o r k s , praising e v e r y beauty, a n d y e t o b s e r v i n g that they failed in the grace, called charis i n G r e e k , w h i c h w a s d i s t i n c t i v e l y h i s o w n ; e v e r y t h i n g else t h e y h a d a t t a i n e d , but i n t h i s a l o n e n o n e equaled h i m . "

See Natural History 35.79, trans. K. J e x - B l a c k e and E. Sellers as The Elder Pliny's Chapters on the History of Art ( L o n d o n , 1896), 121.

25. X e n o p h o n , Symposium 3 . 9 - 1 1 , 4 . 5 5 - 6 1 , in The Works of Xenophon, trans. H . G . D a k y n s ( L o n d o n , 1897), 3:309, 3 2 5 - 3 2 6 .

26. P h i l o s t r a t o s ( A t h e n i a n , s e c o n d century), Epistolai erotikai-, see W i l h e l m P l a n k l , Alkiphron Hetaren- briefe ( M u n i c h , 1939), 7 8 - 7 9 . P h i l o s t r a t u s reported also that Lais gave herself i n the s a m e m e a s u r e to t h e m a n n o t in l o v e w i t h her as to t h e o n e w h o was.

27. See, i n t h i s c o n t e x t , Edgar W i n d : Pagan Mysteries in the Renaissance ( L o n d o n , 1958), 1 8 9 - 1 9 0 . 28. A t h e n e a u s 1937. C o n c e r n i n g t h i s episode, see also X e n o p h o n , Memorabilia 3.11.1, trans.

E. G . M a r c h a n t ( L o n d o n , 1923), 2 3 9 - 2 4 1 . 29. Commentari Marsilii Ficini Florentini in Convivium Platonis de Amore ( w r i t t e n 1 4 7 4 - 1 4 7 5 ; Florence, 1484), trans, and introd. Sears R e y n o l d s Jayne, Marsilio Ficino's Commentary on Plato's Symposium ( C o l u m b i a , Miss., 1944). For the passage cited, see F i c i n o , Ueber die Liebe oder Platons Gastmahl, trans. Karl P. H a s s e (Leipzig, 1914; reprint H a m b u r g , 1984), 325.

30. See, in t h i s c o n t e x t , V a l e r i o M a r c h e t t i ,

" F a s c i n a t i o : A l l e i n der B l i c k w e c h s e l v e r w u n d e t , "

i n E l m a r Locher, ed., Hippolytus Cuarinonius im interkulturellen Kontext seiner Zeit (Bolzano, 1995), 1 1 7 - 1 3 6 .

31. T h i s d i s c u s s i o n — i n the c o n t e x t of the m o d e r n era's u n d e r s t a n d i n g of the w o r l d , m a t h e m a t i c a l i n f i n i t i e s , a n d the i l l u s i o n of a h e a v e n l y s p h e r e — i s f o u n d in H a n s B l u m e n b e r g ' s f o r e w o r d to G i o r d a n o B r u n o , Das Aschermittwochsmahl, trans. F e r d i n a n d F e l l m a n n (Frankfurt a m M a i n , 1981), 1 1 - 6 1 , esp.

53~54-

32. For the c a r t o g r a p h y and c o s m o l o g y of the m o d e r n era, see Behaim Globus [exh. cat., G e r m a n i s c h e s N a t i o n a l m u s e u m ] ( N u r e m b e r g , 1992).

33. C h r i s t i a n M i i l l e r , ed. Hans Holbein d. /.. Die Druckgraphik im Kupferstichkabinett Basel [exh.

cat., K u n s t m u s e u m Basel| (Basel, 1997).

] . M U L L E R 1 5 3