Lucas Cranach, partner in reform

Last spring I visited the Paris exhibition Cranach in His Time, where I was introduced to a sampling of Lucas Cranach Sr.’s diverse and sometimes puzzling range of work. Cranach (1472–1553) produced more than 1,500 paintings, not to mention engravings, decorative work and altarpieces.

I began my tour with his portrait of the powerful and shrewd Frederick the Wise, who was Saxon’s ruling elector, Cranach’s patron and Luther’s protector. A little further on I studied a portrait of Luther, Cranach’s friend and partner, painted as a nonthreatening monk—an effort to persuade his critics that he was not dangerous.

The exhibit also included The Law and the Gospel, which exemplifies Cranach’s powerful work on Lutheran themes. The Law is divided into two parts: the left side depicts an Old Testament prophet with Adam and Eve in the background, and the right side shows an empty tomb and John the Baptist. Both holy men point behind them to the crucified Christ—unified in their conviction that salvation comes through Christ and only through Christ.