Jost Amman facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jost Amman
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Portrait of Jost Amman
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| Born | 3 June 1539 Zürich, Old Swiss Confederacy
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| Died | 17 March 1591 (aged 51) |
| Nationality | Swiss, German |
| Known for | Woodcuts |
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Notable work
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Das Ständebuch |
| Movement | Northern Renaissance |
Jost Amman (born June 13, 1539 – died March 17, 1591) was a talented artist from Switzerland and Germany. He was most famous for his amazing woodcuts, which are special prints made from carved wood. Many of his woodcuts were used to illustrate books.
Contents
Jost Amman's Early Life
Jost Amman was born in Zürich, a city in Switzerland. His father was a professor who taught subjects like Classics and Logic. This meant Jost received a good education himself.
Not much is known about his early personal life. In 1560, when he was about 21, he moved to Nuremberg, a city in Germany. He became a citizen there and lived in Nuremberg until he passed away in 1591. When he first arrived, he worked with another artist named Virgil Solis, who was a top artist for book illustrations at the time.
Jost Amman's Artistic Career
Jost Amman was an incredibly productive artist. One of his students once said that the drawings Amman made in just four years would be enough to fill a whole hay wagon! Many of his original drawings are kept safe in the Berlin print room today.
About 1,500 different prints are believed to have been made by Amman. He was one of the last major artists to create woodcuts for books. During his career, a new printing method called engraving started to become more popular. Engravings used metal plates instead of wood blocks.
Usually, Amman would draw his designs, and then a special craftsman called a formschneider would carve the wood block. However, sometimes Amman would sign his prints with both a carving knife and a quill pen. This suggests that he might have carved some of his own wood blocks too!
Famous Works and Illustrations
Jost Amman created the artwork for many important books. He illustrated Wenzel Jamnitzer's book called Perspectiva corporum regularium in 1568. This book was about regular shapes and perspective.
In 1576, a series of engravings by Amman was published in Frankfurt. These engravings showed the kings of France and included short stories about their lives. He also made many woodcut pictures for a Bible that was printed in Frankfurt.
Amman also worked on a detailed map book of Bavaria by Philipp Apian. Another very important work he created was called Panoplia Omnium Liberalium Mechanicarum et Seden-tariarum Artium Genera Continens. This book had 115 plates showing different jobs and trades from his time. It's a great way to see what people did for a living back then!
Amman's drawings were very accurate and full of energy. He was especially good at showing tiny details in people's clothing. This makes his work very valuable for understanding history. While some oil paintings and glass paintings are thought to be by him, none have been officially confirmed.
Jost Amman's Death
Jost Amman passed away in Nuremberg, Germany, when he was 51 years old.
Images for kids
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This image shows a Formschneider, or block-cutter, working on a woodcut in 1568. This picture comes from Das Ständebuch, a famous series of woodcuts by Amman that showed different jobs and trades. Amman usually drew the designs, and someone else would carve the wood block.
See also
In Spanish: Jost Amman para niños
