Young Hare Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528)

Description of Albrecht Dürer’s painting Hare

One of German painter Albrecht Dürer’s most famous works. Although the master has many more noteworthy works, such as a deer with prominent antlers, or a dead bird with rainbow plumage. The history of the painting has several versions.

According to one of them, one day while walking, Dürer came across a sick hare that needed urgent care. He took him to his home and went out, which is why the hare poses so meekly in front of the artist, with the window frame reflected in his eyes. Also, it is safe to say that the watercolor was painted in summer, because the fur of the rusak in winter has a much lighter shade than that depicted in the picture.

It is believed that Dürer painted his hare from life, as the window cover is depicted correctly, given the curve of the animal’s pupil. Some art connoisseurs insist on the opposite, that the artist painted his picture from memory, and the reflection of the window bindings in the pupil, they call only a masterfully executed artistic device. But by right this hare will forever remain a work of art of the highest level. It is worth noting how masterfully the artist depicted the animal’s fur. How finely the individual hairs are highlighted, it is shown that the wool in the areas of the neck is wet. The author of the painting unsurpassedly depicted the eyes of his hare, ears, nose, which as if sniffing at something.

You get the impression that this is not just a picture, and in front of the viewer is a live animal, which you want to stroke his fluffy fur. Durer was one of the first German painters to use the technique of drawing with watercolor, which is why he was able to convey the main features of the appearance of the animal with a high degree of accuracy.

The hairs of the wool were processed over watercolor gouache that allowed him to depict the wool naturally, because if you look closely, it is impossible to find 2 identical hairs. And the whitewash, in turn, creates the effect of volume in the body of the hare, giving its fur a sense of lightness.