The Last Supper and Christ Washing the Feet of His Disciples, plate nine from Passio domini nostri Jesu Christi
Urs Graf, the Elder
c. 1503
Medium
Woodcut on ivory laid paper with letterpress on verso
Dimensions
21.9 × 15.4 cm (8 5/8 × 6 1/8 in.)
Classification
woodcut
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
23357
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Urs Graf is best known for his satirical drawings and prints of prostitutes and mercenary soldiers. He likely paused his own military campaign jaunts to design the decidedly tamer set of book illustrations of the Passion of Christ. These images are livelier than they first appear, with curious perspectival attempts and a merging of multiple narratives. Yet the Last Supper snaps into spatial sense only when color is added, a step that was intended, but probably not completed, by Graf himself.