Pacher, Michael

(c. 1435-1498)

   Austrian painter and sculptor who commingled Italian and Northern elements in his art, creating a new idiom of expression. He was from the Tyrol region, and was probably born in Neutstift, near Bressanone, Italy, hence the Italianate elements in his works. A trip to Padua and Venice exposed Pacher to the art of Andrea Mantegna, from which he developed an interest in architectural forms viewed from below and figures pushed close to the foreground. In 1467, Pacher is documented as a citizen of Bruneck where he established a workshop. His best-known work is the Altar-piece of St. Wolfgang (1471-1481; Sankt-Wolfgang, Parish Church), which presents the carved Coronation of the Virgin as the central scene. Two sets of painted wings depict Sts. George and Florian in armor and narratives from the lives of St. Wolfgang and Christ. The altarpiece is crowned with elaborately carved Gothic pinnacles and a crucifix in the center, at its base apredella. The work constitutes one of the most impressive carved altarpieces of the 15th century.