Before Dutch still life painting developed, artists illuminated handwritten manuscripts to add emotional power to a written work. A celebrated practitioner of this style was Joris Hoefnagel. Reproduced here is a page he illuminated for the Mira Calligraphiae Monumenta, a mid-16th-century manuscript by Georg Bocskay.
- Paper is derived from sustainable forest pulp, and binder boards are made with 100% recycled materials
- Measures 7 x 9 inches
- 144 acid-free lined pages
- Satin ribbon marker
- Elastic band closure
- Inside cover pouch for loose papers
- Item #: 978- 1439781241
Original Art: Illuminated page from the Mira Calligraphiae Monumenta Era: mid to late 1500s Region: Netherlands The specific piece from the Mira reproduced here is known as Wainscot, French Rose, Wasplike Insect, English Daisy and Caterpillar, owing to the plants and insects most clearly depicted. The scientific naturalism of Hoefnagel's botanical and animal drawings are what served as a model for future Netherlandish still life artists. Hoefnagel is remembered as being the last important Flemish manuscript illuminator and one of the first artists to work on the new genre of still life. The Mira Calligraphiae Monumenta (Model Book of Calligraphy) is celebrated as one of the last important examples of European manuscript illumination. With Bocskay and Hoefnagel, two masters of their field, at work, no one art form rises as superior. Instead, the calligraphy and illumination elevate each other. Today, the book can be found in the collections of the Getty Museum in California.
