Famous German Renaissance Painters

Albrecht Durer was a German painter, theorist, and printmaker of the German Renaissance. During his 20s, Durer established his reputation as a popular printmaker across Europe, thanks to his high-quality woodcut prints. His popularity enabled him to work with major Italian artists like Leonardo da Vinci, Giovanni Bellini, and Raphael. Albrecht Durer also influenced generations of artists, especially in printmaking.

Hans Holbein the Younger was a German printmaker and painter. Regarded as one of the 16th century's greatest portraitists, Holbein was also renowned for producing Reformation propaganda, satire, and religious art. Many of his portraits are now considered cultural icons. Holbein is also credited with contributing immensely to the evolution of book design.

German painter Lucas Cranach the Elder enriched the German Renaissance with his paintings and wood engravings. A court painter of the Electors of Saxony, he specialized in painting both nudes and ladies in fine clothing, and mostly depicted biblical and mythological themes. He also inspired the Danube school of Austria.

German Renaissance painter Matthias Grünewald, also known as Master Mathis, was the court painter of the elector of Mainz. His drawings were mostly made in black chalk. Of his religious works, the Isenheim Altarpiece still survives, though most of his works were destroyed in the Thirty Years' War.

Albrecht Altdorfer was a German painter, engraver, and architect active during the Renaissance. He predominantly worked in Regensburg, Bavaria. He is considered one of the main representatives of the Danube School of painters. He was one of the first artists to focus on landscape as an independent subject. As an architect, he oversaw the construction of several commercial structures.