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Old Masters Black and White Photography

OLD MASTERS

Encompassing centuries of change in Europe between 1300 and 1800, from booms of prosperity to bloody revolutions, Old Masters describes a wide range of artists. The informal term was derived from the title of an artist who trained in a guild long enough to become a master, such as Leonardo da Vinci, who studied in a Florence painters’ guild. However, Old Masters paintings, prints and other art is now used to refer to work made by any artist with a high level of skill in painting, drawing, sculpture or printmaking who worked during this era.

The 15th century’s expansive trade and commerce spread culture across borders. A vibrant period of art emerged, bolstered by studies of anatomy and nature that influenced a new visual realism. From Raphael and Michelangelo in the Renaissance to Rembrandt van Rijn and Johannes Vermeer in the Dutch Golden Age, artists expressed emotion, naturalism, color and light in new ways. El Greco and Paolo Veronese were leaders in the dramatic style of Mannerism, while Caravaggio and Peter Paul Rubens demonstrated the movement and meticulous detail of Baroque art.

Historically, most attention was concentrated on male artists, but recent research and exhibitions have elevated the impactful work of women such as Rachel Ruysch and Artemisia Gentileschi. In late-18th-century France, female artists like Adélaïde Labille-Guiard and Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun were prominent names. Nevertheless, access to the academies and guilds was highly restricted for women, and even those able to establish practices were expected to adhere to portraits and still lifes rather than the grand history paintings being created by men.

Find a collection of Old Masters prints, paintings, drawings and watercolors and other art on 1stDibs.

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Style: Old Masters
Closure
Located in London, GB
'Closure' London, United Kingdom 2018 Limited edition of 20. John Gibson 'Hylas Surprised by the Naiades' According to Greek mythology, Hylas was the beautiful son of King Thiodom...
Category

2010s Old Masters Black and White Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper, Giclée

Pablo Neruda - b/w photo - 1962
Located in Roma, IT
Pablo Neruda Vintage Photo, b/w photo is realized in 1962. With the stamp of " Scarmiglia, Roma" Good conditions, consumed margins.
Category

1960s Old Masters Black and White Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper

Closure
Located in London, GB
'Closure' London, United Kingdom 2018 Limited edition of 20. John Gibson 'Hylas Surprised by the Naiades' According to Greek mythology, Hylas was the beautiful son of King Thiodom...
Category

2010s Old Masters Black and White Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper, Giclée

Louvre, Statue I
Located in New York City, NY
Edition of 9. Signature label. Framed work. A prominent French architectural photographer, Jean-Christophe Ballot’s body of work concerns itself with space: be it cities with urb...
Category

Early 2000s Old Masters Black and White Photography

Materials

Archival Pigment

Louvre, Aile Denon, La Victoire de Samothrace, Paris, France
Located in New York City, NY
Edition of 9. Signature label. Framed work. A prominent French architectural photographer, Jean-Christophe Ballot’s body of work concerns itself with space: be it cities with urb...
Category

Early 2000s Old Masters Black and White Photography

Materials

Archival Pigment

Louvre, Depois le toit du pavillon de Flore, Paris, France
Located in New York City, NY
Edition of 9. Signature label. Framed work. A prominent French architectural photographer, Jean-Christophe Ballot’s body of work concerns itself with space: be it cities with urb...
Category

Early 2000s Old Masters Black and White Photography

Materials

Archival Pigment

Louvre, Statue III
Located in New York City, NY
Edition of 9. Signature label. Framed work. A prominent French architectural photographer, Jean-Christophe Ballot’s body of work concerns itself with space: be it cities with urb...
Category

Early 2000s Old Masters Black and White Photography

Materials

Archival Pigment

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S. Paolo Fuori Le Mura (Vedute della Basilica di S. Paolo fuor della mura)
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S. Paolo Fuori Le Mura (Vedute della Basilica di S. Paolo fuor della mura) Etching, 1748 From: Vedute di Roma, Plate 8 An early Roman printing, published by Bouchard e Gravier Watermark: Fleur de Lys in a double circle Signed in the plate Condition: Small margins as are common with Bouchard published impressions. Centerfold (as usual) Rich impression with good contrasts Plate/Image size: 15 7/8 x 24 1/8 inches Sheet size: 17 3/8 x 24 3/4 inches Reference: Focillon 723 Wilton-Ely 138 Hind 6 ii/VI, Bouchard e Gravier printing, before the price and numbers in later states This image is Piranesi’s second interior scene from the Vedute di Roma. The first interior is a less complex composition of the Interior of St. Peters which lacks the challenging perspective that the artist masters in this image. The Papal Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls...
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Camera sepolcrale Etching 1743 Signed in the bottom left corner From: Prima Parte, 1743 Second edition: 1750-1778 Watermark: R 37-39 A lifetime impression printed during Piranesi’s life, before the plates are moved to Paris by his sons in the 1790’s Condition: Excellent Image size: 14 5/8 x 9 3/4 inches Reference: Robison 20 iii/V Piranesi In Rome: Prima Parte di Architetture e Prospettive "Although Piranesi studied architecture in Venice, he never was able to find work in the field other than a few jobs involving remodeling in Rome. While Piranesi was struggling to support his architectural endeavors upon his arrival in Rome in 1740, he spent a short period of time in the studio of master painter Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (1696-1770) in addition to his apprenticeship with Giuseppe Vasi. The first production of Piranesi’s early years in Rome and a culmination of his training under Vasi, Tiepolo, and his uncle, was the Prima Parte di Architetture e Prospettive (1743). The Prima Parte was a collection of twelve etchings of imaginary temples, palaces, ruins, and a prison. During this time, Piranesi was still developing the unique style of etching he is known for today, and as such the Prima Parte differs significantly in technique compared to later works. In the Frontispiece of the Prima Parte, Piranesi’s lines are definite and exact with very little flow to them, designed in the form of traditional etching. The detail is immaculate, and yet perspective of the piece is oddly simple and familiar to the viewer. Piranesi’s technique employs miniscule markings and lines, intricately woven together to create a stippling effect. The Prima Parte, described as “rigid” by art historian Jonathan Scott, came to be seen as a stark contrast to his later sketches, which were much lighter and freer. Influenced by the style of Tiepolo, which epitomized the lightness and brightness of the Rococo period, Piranesi adopted some of the more painterly techniques of the masters he apprenticed under. Piranesi made the medium of etching appear as though it was a sketch or a painting, hence a “freer” and more fluid design in his later works. For example, the frontispiece of the Prima Parte read as an etching to Piranesi’s audience, but in his later vedute, the style of etching almost appears to be made of brushstrokes. Moreover, at the same time Piranesi was working on the Prima Parte, he aided the artist Giambattista Nolli. There is a small section of Nolli’s map...
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Carcere ascura
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Carcere ascura Etching, 1743 Signed in the plate bottom left corner From: Prima Parte, 1743 Second edition: 1750-1778 Watermark: R 37-39 A lifetime impression printed during Piranesi’s life, before the plates are moved to Paris by his sons in the 1790’s This image foretells Piranesi's famous set, Carceri (Prisons) which is his next creative effort. Condition: Horizontal crease midway in the sheet associated with the manufacture of the paper. Visible watermark verso Small printer crease in the bottom right below the caption plate. Image size: 14 1/2 x 9 1/2 inches Reference: Robison 3 iii/VI Piranesi In Rome: Prima Parte di Architetture e Prospettive "Although Piranesi studied architecture in Venice, he never was able to find work in the field other than a few jobs involving remodeling in Rome. While Piranesi was struggling to support his architectural endeavors upon his arrival in Rome in 1740, he spent a short period of time in the studio of master painter Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (1696-1770) in addition to his apprenticeship with Giuseppe Vasi. The first production of Piranesi’s early years in Rome and a culmination of his training under Vasi, Tiepolo, and his uncle, was the Prima Parte di Architetture e Prospettive (1743). The Prima Parte was a collection of twelve etchings of imaginary temples, palaces, ruins, and a prison. During this time, Piranesi was still developing the unique style of etching he is known for today, and as such the Prima Parte differs significantly in technique compared to later works. In the Frontispiece of the Prima Parte, Piranesi’s lines are definite and exact with very little flow to them, designed in the form of traditional etching. The detail is immaculate, and yet perspective of the piece is oddly simple and familiar to the viewer. Piranesi’s technique employs miniscule markings and lines, intricately woven together to create a stippling effect. The Prima Parte, described as “rigid” by art historian Jonathan Scott, came to be seen as a stark contrast to his later sketches, which were much lighter and freer. Influenced by the style of Tiepolo, which epitomized the lightness and brightness of the Rococo period, Piranesi adopted some of the more painterly techniques of the masters he apprenticed under. Piranesi made the medium of etching appear as though it was a sketch or a painting, hence a “freer” and more fluid design in his later works. For example, the frontispiece of the Prima Parte read as an etching to Piranesi’s audience, but in his later vedute, the style of etching almost appears to be made of brushstrokes. Moreover, at the same time Piranesi was working on the Prima Parte, he aided the artist Giambattista Nolli. There is a small section of Nolli’s map...
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Previously Available Items
Closure
Located in London, GB
'Closure' London, United Kingdom 2018 Limited edition of 15. John Gibson 'Hylas Surprised by the Naiades' According to Greek mythology, Hylas was the beautiful son of King Thiodomu...
Category

2010s Old Masters Black and White Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper, Giclée

Closure
H 27.56 in W 19.69 in D 0.2 in
Untitled, New York. Framed
Located in Miami Beach, FL
New York, 1957 attributed to Erwin Blumenfeld Silver gelatin print. Unsigned/documented "Erwin Blumenfeld from Dada to Vogue" Image size: 13.91 in. H x 11.08 in. W Frame size: 36 in....
Category

1650s Old Masters Black and White Photography

Materials

Photographic Film, Photographic Paper, Black and White

Louvre, Aile Denon, Les noces de Cana de Veronese, Paris, France
Located in New York City, NY
Edition of 9. Signature label. Framed work. A prominent French architectural photographer, Jean-Christophe Ballot’s body of work concerns itself with space: be it cities with urb...
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Early 2000s Old Masters Black and White Photography

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Archival Pigment

Old Masters black and white photography for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Old Masters black and white photography available for sale on 1stDibs. Works in this style were very popular during the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artists have continued to produce works inspired by this movement. Frequently made by artists working with Archival Pigment Print, and Pigment Print and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Old Masters black and white photography, so small editions measuring 9.45 inches across are also available. Prices for black and white photography made by famous or emerging artists can differ depending on medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $201 and tops out at $2,000, while the average work sells for $2,000.

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