BEHAM, Hans Sebald

German engraver who was the most prolific of the Kleinmeister (German: Little Masters) of engravingGLOSSARYA print made from a metal plate that has had a design cut into it with a sharp point. Ink is smeared over the plate and then wiped off, the ink remaining in the etched lines being transferred when the plate is pressed very firmly onto a sheet of paper., so called because they produced small prints. The Kleinmeister also included Beham's younger brother, Barthel Beham (1502-40), and Georg Pencz (c. 1500-50). All three artists, noted for their brilliant work on extremely small copper plates, grew up under the influence of Albrecht Dürer's late classicalGLOSSARYRelating to the culture of ancient Greece and Rome (classical Antiquity). The classical world played a profoundly important role in the Renaissance, with Italian scholars, writers, and artists seeing their own period as the rebirth (the "renaissance") of classical values after the Middle Ages. The classical world was considered the golden age for the arts, literature, philosophy, and politics. Concepts of the classical, however, changed greatly from one period to the next. Roman literature provided the starting point in the 14th century, scholars patiently finding, editing and translating a wide range of texts. In the 15th century Greek literature, philosophy and art - together with the close study of the remains of Roman buildings and sculptures-expanded the concept of the classical and ensured it remained a vital source of ideas and inspiration. style. It is likely that they worked in Dürer's studio. In 1525 the trio was banned from Nürnberg for independent religious views, but not for long. Later Beham moved to Frankfurt am Main. His 252 engravings include biblical and mythological subjects, allegories, genreGLOSSARYIn a broad sense, the term is used to mean a particular branch or category of art; landscape and portraiture, for example, are genres of painting, and the essay and the short story are genres of literature. scenes, and ornaments. Of particular charm were the genre scenes, such as a set entitled Peasant Festival (1537). Some of his woodcuts were of very large size, intended as wall decorations.