George Pencz 1500-1550

Sleeping woman 1544 (Vanitas), The Norton Simon Foundation

George Pencz worked in Dürer’s atelier. Like his master, he visited Italy and was profoundly influenced by Venetian art. This painting was certainly meant to be a collector’s cabinet piece or bedroom hanging. Pencz has drawn freely from the Venetian examples of Giorgione and his followers, and the painting’s main interest is undoubtedly erotic.