Printmaker, illustrator, stained glass artist, and painter Sebald Beham - who has historically been referred to as Hans Sebald Beham due to his use of the "H" in his monogram - was born in Nuremberg, Germany in 1500. While nothing is found on his parentage, records exist of his brother Bartel Beham, who was born two years later and also became a respected artist. The brothers and their friend Georg Pencz were considered leaders of the German "Little Masters" group known for highly detailed miniature woodengravings. All three were accused of heresy and blashpemy in the 1520s due to the occasionally erotic overtones of their religious works. In combination with their radical adoption of Lutheran doctrines in the Roman Catholic city of Nuremberg, they would famously become known as the "godless painters." 

Now seen as one of the most important contributors to German Renaissance-Reformation printmaking (which includes Durer, Holbein the Younger, and Hans Baldung Grien) it wasn't until the 1980s that Behan's contributions to art were given serious consideration. Of note is his interest in woodengraving as an artform before their widespread use as a commercial medium. He was one of the first European artists to produce more prints than paintings, and he was also one of the few early printmakers to remain the sole executor of each print from conception to carving to printing. Of particular significance is his interest in the daily lives of everyday people and activities. This was unusual at a time when religion and mythology were widely considered the only worthy subjects.

Records of Beham's life (outside of the trial brought upon him, his brother, and Pencz by the Nuremberg city council) are extremely scarce. This includes references to his education. While there is no concrete evidence that he was trained by Albrecht Dürer, his work strongly suggests a serious admiration for and study of the famed artist's style.

What is known of his life is mainly due to his actual artistic output. In the very early 1520s Beham experimented with ironplate etching, a diffcult medium due to the plates' propensity to rust and therefor effect the ink and paper, leaving very few extant impressions. At this time he also worked in stained glass and was soon viewed as Nuremburg's leading glass designer after the death of Hans von Kulmbach in 1522. Beham's interest in color was complementary to his woodengravings, and he produced some larger prints with richly hued, hand-applied watercolor. Writes Alison G. Stewart of the Journal of Historians of Netherlandish Art: "In Beham’s time, such coloring may have meant the work was thought of as a 'painting' or the work of a 'painter.' Although the dividing line between prints and paintings is firmly drawn today, in the early sixteenth century, it may have been more fluid."

The effect of religion on the artists of Renaissance-era Germany cannot be understated. Just two months after the successful 1525 blasphemy trial against the Beham brother and Pencz in direct relation to their support of the Lutheran church, the city of Nuremberg changed its official religion from Catholic to Lutheran. However, the damage had been done. Though they returned to Nuremberg from exile after a year, Beham's reputation had been tarnished enough to make an accusation of plagiarism unshakeable. In 1528, after attempting to publish an instructional art book on the proportions of horses, the town council prohibited the publication and called for a trial. Beham fled, and historians still debate whether it was due to his guilt or to his fear of the conservative dictates of the town, which he'd already experienced firsthand.

Following this, Behman appears to have lived in various town and cities throughout Germany, sending his works by courier to publications. He eventually settled in Frankfurt around 1530 and became a part of its burgeoning book publishing scene, working as an illustrator for several established publishing houses. He also continued his own personal work in engraving and design which took on more provocative themes than was allowed by the censors of Nuremberg. He seems to have flourished in this new setting and, interestingly, was given many commissions by both Catholics and Lutherans. 

In the last years of his life, the town of his birth finally recognized Beham for his significant contribution to the art world. He was honored for two works, a painting on vellum and a panel oil, in 1546 and 1547. He died in Frankfurt in 1550.