by Albrecht Dürer, 1503
The Great Piece of Turf (Das große Rasenstück) shows a patch of meadow grass at close range, each blade and plantain leaf painted individually. Created in 1503 by Albrecht Dürer, this watercolor transforms humble vegetation into a subject worthy of serious artistic attention. The low viewpoint places the viewer at ground level, eye-to-eye with dandelions and yarrow.
Dürer's nature studies represented a radical approach to observing the natural world. Rather than using nature merely as background, he examined it with the same attention given to human subjects. The Great Piece of Turf anticipates modern ecological thinking in its insistence that ordinary plants deserve careful study.
The watercolor is at the Albertina in Vienna.
Other masterpieces from the Northern Renaissance movement

Jan van Eyck, 1436
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.

Jan van Eyck, 1434
National Gallery, London

Hugo van der Goes, 1475
Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Florence

Jan van Eyck, 1432
Saint Bavo's Cathedral, Ghent

Lucas Cranach the Elder, 1526
Museo del Prado, Madrid, Madrid
Jan van Eyck
St. Bavo Cathedral, Ghent, Ghent

Jan van Eyck
St. Bavo Cathedral, Ghent, Ghent

Jan van Eyck
Sabauda Gallery, Turin, Turin
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