WOLF HUBER
131 The Conversion of Saint Paul
Pen and black ink; H: 18.3 cm (7^3 /i6 in.); W: 12.9 cm
(S'/iein.)
85.GA.i4
MARKS AND INSCRIPTIONS: At top left corner, dated
1531 in black ink; inscribed AD in brown ink by a later
hand.
PROVENANCE: De Mestral de Saint-Saphorin; by de-
scent (sale, Christie's, London, April 10, 1985, lot 144);
art market, London.
EXHIBITIONS: None.
BIBLIOGRAPHY: None.
THE SUBJECT OF THIS DRAWING IS THE CONVERSION
of Saint Paul, with idiosyncratic variations typical of the
Danube school. The angel holding a scroll is unexpected
in renderings of this theme, but angels do appear along-
side God the Father in Baldung's woodcut of the same
subject of around 1505-1 soy.^1 It is likely that this draw-
ing was cut down and that God the Father and additional
cherubim were shown above the dove of the Holy Spirit.
Otherwise the iconography of the depiction is not het-
erodox. The horse's pose and the billowing drapery oc-
cur, respectively, in the Conversion of Saint Paul woodcuts
by Baldung^2 and the engraving of the subject of circa
1495 attributed to Diirer.^3 The town view and water in
the background are frequent features of renderings of the
theme, and even the small armed horseman finds an anal-
ogy, in a south German drawing in the Kunstmuseum
Basel (Kupferstichkabinett, inv.u.in.47).^4 Lastly, the
conception of Saint Paul falling to the side reflects, in a
general sense, the riders with Saint Paul in Baldung's
woodcut of circa 1515/iy.^5 Notwithstanding all of these
precedents, the scene has been formulated with great
ingenuity.
The poetic, idyllic atmosphere, the placement of the
main participant on a foreground stage, the large tree
with abundant foliage, and the delicate rendering of a
mountainous background are hallmarks of Huber's
drawings.^6 The florid, billowing motif of Saint Paul's
drapery is also typical of his work. Compared to a stu-
dent's effort,^7 Huber's unique ability to capture these
complexly formed passages becomes evident. While the
horse reflects the example of Baldung in the expressive
conception of the head, its overall proportions and hind-
quarters with flowing tail are closest to the horse in pro-
file in Huber's drawing of 1518, Battle of Riders* as does
the heavy outlining of the hind end and legs. The only
motif from another artist is the angel, taken from Alt-
dorfer's woodcut of the Annunciation to Joachim of circa
I5I3,^9 which had already influenced Huber in his depic-
tions of the latter subject. Similarly, the bag hanging
from Saint Paul's belt, which may have derived from Bal-
dung's Saint Paul woodcut of 1505/07, had already made
its way into Huber's Battle of Riders.
The graphic style of the Museum's drawing is sub-
tle, exhibiting the finest gradations of line work and sen-
sitively suggesting effects of light, texture, and space.
The atmospheric character of the scene and the subtlety
of its pen work separate it from the many drawings by
followers of Huber and place it firmly within his work.
Its technique is more precise than in most of his draw-
ings, but this may well result from its purpose. The over-
all character and scale of the drawing are analogous to
several of his woodcuts,^10 indicating that it may well have
been made with a print in mind.1. M. Mende, Hans Baldung Grien: Das graphische Werk (Un-
terscheidheim, 1978), no. 8.- Ibid., nos. 8, 42.
3. W. L. Strauss, The Complete Engravings, Etchings and Dry-
points of Albrecht Diirer (New York, 1973), no. 3. - T. Falk, Katalog der Zeichnungen des 15. and 16. Jahrhunderts im
Kupferstichkabinett Basel, Kunstmuseum Basel, OfFentliche
Kunstsammlung: Kupferstichkabinett: Beschreibender Ka-
talog der Zeichnungen, vol. 3 (Basel, 1979), no. no. - Mende (note i), no. 42.
- C. Talbot et al., Prints and Drawings of the Danube School, exh.
cat., Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, and other in-
stitutions, 1969, pp. 78-79. - F. Winzinger, Wolf Huber: Das Gesamtwerk (Munich, 1979),
no. 197. - Formerly in Rotterdam. Ibid., no. 59.
- Talbot et al. (note 6), no. 28.
- Winzinger (note 7), nos. 269, 271.
294 GERMAN SCHOOL • HUBER