This Art Marketing Story Amazed Me

Albrecht Durer self portrait (1500)

What comes to mind when you hear the words "art marketing"? Probably a modern idea of Pop art like Andy Warhol or maybe Salvador Dali? Outrageous behavior by artists seeking attention? Or something more mundane like adverts in magazines? Yes all these are true and all in the relatively modern era. So I was amazed by this true story of the first art marketer. He lived over five hundred years ago.

Albrecht Durer was born in Nuremberg, Germany, in 1471. His father was a prominent goldsmith who quickly recognised his son's intelligence. Young Albrecht was sent to school to learn how to read and write. With that achieved he was put into his father's goldsmith business. But Albrecht's talent for drawing was so strong that he was quickly apprenticed to Nuremberg's leading artist. 

Durer self-portrait at 13 years old. The earliest know child self portrait in the world.

Durer's self portrait (on left) at a mere thirteen years old was done in silverpoint. A technique that allowed for no mistakes! It shows his abundant talent and confidence.

Durer was introduced to printing from an early stage in his career. Printing using woodcuts and engravings became a source of fame for Durer. He quickly recognised the potential of printing to spread his art in volume. His fame grew rapidly as a result.

Durer also took the unprecedented step of signing his work with a monogram. You can see an example in the top left of the portrait above. The Capital A and D motif became his unique brand. Up to that point artists did not sign their works.

Added to this Durer documented his process and wrote captions on many of his works. You can see examples of this on both of these portraits. This made Durer the first artist to identify himself as creator of his art in such a bold manner.

Durer's fame spread wider as he traveled to Italy and the Netherlands where artists were held in high regard. However opportunists wasted no time in copying Durer's style and producing their own prints. Sound familiar? One enterprising plagiarist even used Durer's monogram. However Durer did not take this lightly. 

Durer launched possibly the world's first trademark and copyright lawsuit against the plagiarist. The court ruled that the work could be copied, but that the monogram could not be replicated on copies by anyone other than Durer himself. The monogram was recognised as authentication of the artist's work. Does this sound modern to you? Yet it took place in the early 1500's.

This story of Durer's marketing skills is a side-note in a remarkably prolific career. Durer was a true Renaissance man. His legacy continues to this day especially in Germany where he remains a national hero.

Durer nevertheless knew the importance of printing and the power of celebrity to build his career. By taking advantage of these concepts together with his immense talent his legacy was assured. Today we have the internet, which is a revolution much like the printing press was in Durer's time. What would Durer make of it all?
​I am sure he would love the opportunities that modern communication provide. 

You can find out more about this extraordinary artist in the BBC documentary below:

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