Witches

The Northern renaissance woodcut Witches by Hans Baldung is a striking example of genre painting that combines dark symbolism with innovative imagery. Depicting witches preparing to fly to a Witches' Sabbath using flying ointment, the chiaroscuro technique heightens the dramatic contrast between light and shadow. This work marks Baldung's first woodcut after leaving Albrecht Dürer's studio and is among the earliest Renaissance images to portray flying witches and their assembly, blending supernatural themes with the detailed realism characteristic of the Northern renaissance.