The Large Crucifixion c. 1516

Wolfgang Huber created ‘The Large Crucifixion’ with woodcut on paper sometime in the 16th century. Woodcut is a relief printing process where an image is carved into the surface of a block of wood, with the printing parts remaining level with the surface while the non-printing parts are removed. The stark black lines, the relative ease of carving, and the multiple impressions that can be made all speak to the relative democratisation of art at this moment. Huber’s rough marks, cut with a knife, give the scene an immediacy and visual drama. He would have needed to be a skilled craftsman to carve the small details in the block. Printing enabled dissemination of images and ideas, it facilitated social and religious reformations and revolutions. Consider how this comparatively humble medium, woodcut, could enable such a powerful message. It reminds us that art’s value lies not only in the image, but in the act of making and the context in which it was made.