BALDUNG, HANS, called GRIEN. - Painter, woodcut artist, and draftsman, b. at Schwäbisch-Gmünd in 1484 (1485?), d. at Strasburgo in 1545. He was trained in the painting of Sweden, Alsazia, and especially Norimberga, where, in his youth, he collaborated with Dürer. Having subsequently moved to Strasburgo, and become a citizen there in 1505, he remained there until his death, apart from brief interruptions; the longest took him to Friburgo where,
from 1512 to 1516, he executed his masterpiece, the altar of the Cathedral. At this period, Grünewald (v.) begin to appear in B.'s style, especially with regard to colour. In German art of the first half of the sixteenth century, B. is not only one of the most expressive and refined colourists, but must also be counted among the most powerful woodcut artists and draftsmen. His portraits are marked by a certain Renaissance grandeur, whereas an almost macabre and medieval imagination animates his triumphs of death, his witches, etc.; in religious representations he expresses both the sweetest intimacy and the monumentality suited to great altarpieces. His paintings are found in the principal galleries of Europe, especially in Germany. - See Pl. XLVIII.