Herrenberg Altarpiece

Jerg Ratgeb's Herrenberg Altarpiece from 1518-1519 is the masterwork of this radical German painter who was later executed for his role in the Peasants' War of 1525. The altarpiece's intense emotional expression and dramatic compositions reflect the social tensions of early Reformation Germany. Tempera on panel suited the precise, layered technique expected by ecclesiastical and private patrons across Europe.

Ratgeb's expressionistic distortion of figures and vivid, almost violent color create images of intense spiritual drama, with the elongated figures and turbulent compositions anticipating Expressionist art by four centuries.