Hercules Killing the Lion
1540
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
About the artist
1540
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Hercules Killing the Lion is a 1540 ink by Master HVE, a Renaissance work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This black-and-white print shows a muscular man with a long beard and curly hair, wrestling a lion. The man’s right arm is wrapped around the lion’s neck while his left hand grips its front leg. The background has simple lines, maybe trees or a forest, and the man’s body is drawn with strong, clear lines. The artist used small parallel lines to build up shadows and texture, especially on the lion’s fur and the man’s beard. This method makes the scene look three-dimensional even though it’s just ink on paper. Next, check out how engraving works to see how artists create depth with lines like these.
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