Ornament Print from a series: ‘Grottesco in diversche manieren’

Description

Gallery Rotation Spring/Summer 2012
Hans Vredeman
de Vries
Netherlands, 1527–circa 1606
Ornament print, from Grottesco in diversche manieren
1555–60
Engraving
Museum purchase, 1960/1.118
In addition to being a visual artist, Vries was a designer, architect, engineer, and inventor. His interest in designs for interiors and architectural elements led him to publish a series of books on ornamental illustration, one of which was Grottesco in diversche manieren. This print shows Vries’s skill and attention to detail, but also his command over the style of decorative ornamentation known as grotesque.
A French term derived from the Italian grottesco, grotesque describes a type of European ornament comprised of intricate motifs combining scrollwork, architectural elements, and a mixture of fanciful human figures and fantastical, mythological creatures; it is encountered most often in the decorative and graphic arts. The word originated as a descriptive term for the mural decorations inspired by the Ancient Roman wall paintings unearthed at the Domus Aurea (Golden Palace of Nero) around 1500. Because the site was beneath street level when it was rediscovered, it was believed the rooms were built as caves or grottos, a misunderstanding that not only led to the naming of the style but also to its association with the primitive, the pagan, and the natural.