Ugo da Carpi was a painter and printmaker, the first Italian practitioner of the art of the chiaroscuro woodcut, a technique involving the use of several wood blocks to make one print, each block cut to produce a different tone of the same colour.
Background
Ugo da Carpi’s exact birth date is unknown. Some scholars estimate it to be as early as 1450, although others claim it is closer to 1480. He was the 10th of the 13 children of Count Astolfo da Panico and Elisabetta da Dallo. He was born in Carpi, a town in the province of Modena. He was known as Ugo Panico early in his life, only becoming Ugo da Carpi, which literally translates to "Ugo from Carpi", when he moved away from Carpi later in his life.
Career
He improved the German technique of making shaded wood engravings by using several blocks, one for the outline and others for different shades. To this process he gave the name of chiaroscuro, and his earliest known print in the method dates from 1518. Examples of his works, the best being after Raphael and Parmigianino, can be seen in most comprehensive collections of engravings. He died, probably at Rome, about 1523.
