Raphael, Durer, and Marcantonio Raimondi ― Copying and the Italian Renaissance Print

Rather than a life of the Italian printmaker, this text seeks to describe and define the process used by Marcantonio Raimondi to produce prints by copying paintings (in the case of Raphael) or other prints, as when he produced a set of engravings based on Durer's Life of the Virgin woodcut cycle. In her discussion of this selection of Marcantonio's prints, Pon (associate curator of academic programs, Davis Museum and Cultural Center, Wellesley College, Mass.) considers the notion of an artist's signature, the nature of a copy, and how best to define and understand the process, production, and authorship of prints based on copies. A final chapter analyzes Vasari's biographies of Marcantonio and others to demonstrate his (Vasari's) attitude towards prints and their manufacture. Annotation c2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)