Hieronymus Bosch - Great Dutch Renaissance Artist, Godfather of Surrealism

The Ship of Fools
1490-1500. Oil on panel. Louvre, Paris, France.

Christ Carrying the Cross
Oil on panel. Palacio Real, Madrid, Spain.

The Extraction of the Stone of Madness (The Cure of Folly) c. 1475-80 (200 Kb); Oil on board, 48 x 35 cm (18 7/8 x 13 3/4"); Museo del Prado, Madrid Removing "stones" from the head was a fairly common medieval operation; however, for some reason Bosch has painted a flower as the object being removed.

Useful links:

WebMuseum
Olga's Gallery
Web Gallery Of Art
The Artchive
The Artsyclopedia
Wikipedia
www.bad-penny.gr/
bosch/
Wikimedia
ARC Artrenewal.org
BBC Four Documen-
taries

The Last Judgement Oil on panel (triptych); Akademie der Bildenden Kunste, Vienna

"Hieronymous Bosch produced some of the most inventive fantasy paintings that have ever existed. His obsessive and nightmarish vision has its antecedents in the Gothic twilight world of the late Middle Ages and, although the allegorical medieval world view is now lost, there have been many recent attempts to 'read' his pictures, not least by those who have attempted to interpret Bosch by dream analysis. The Garden of Earthly Delights demonstrates Bosch's dazzling ability to build up a hugely detailed landscape through a series of bizarre exaggerations and distortions. The complete work consists of four paintings on a series of folding panels; the outer panel reveals the Third Day of Creation when closed. Inside, The Garden of Earthly Delights is flanked on the left by the Garden of Eden and on the right by Hell. A wild sexual orgy features in the central panel, where lust is shown to be the cause of man's downfall. There are over a thousand figures in this work altogether. Standing alone in its lifetime, Bosch's work has a timeless and modern quality that greatly endeared him to Surrealists in the twentieth century."

From "The A-Z of Art: The World's
Greatest and Most Popular Artists
and Their Works"
by Nicola Hodge and Libby Anson

The Seven Deadly Sins
c.1485 (50 Kb); Prado, Madrid The Seven Deadly Sins is a painted rectangle with a central image of the eye of God, with Christ watching the world. The Seven Deadly Sins, depicted through scenes of worldly transgression, are arranged around the circular shape. The circular layout with god in the centre represents gods all seeing eye No sin goes unnoticed. In the corners of the image appear the "Four Last Things" mentioned in late medieval spiritual handbooks: Deathbed, the Last Judgment, Heaven, and Hell, all of which are favorite themes of separate Bosch panels.

Dutch Renaissance Artist Hieronymus Bosch Dutch painter of fifteenth and sixteenth centuries Jheronimus Anthonissen van Aken Jeroen Anthonissen van Aken El Bosco, Hertogenbosch 'Den Bosch' 'Dark Ages,' Gothic Renaissance, 'Symbolism', 'Iconography' 'fruit' for carnal pleasure, 'flames' for the fires of hell, 'mussel shells' for infidelity, 'ice skaters' for folly, 'eggs' for sexual creation, 'ears' for gossip, Aleyt Goyaerts van den Meervenne, Oirschot, 'The Brotherhood of Our Lady', "The Garden of Earthly Delights", 'Triptych' "Death and the Miser", "The Ship of Fools", "Christ Carrying the Cross", "The Haywain", "The Temptation of St. Anthony", religion, politics, astrology, black & white magic, alchemy 'Surrealist' movement

The Morbid, Dutch, Renaissance Artist - Hieronymus Bosch
By Annette Labedzki

Hieronymus Bosch was a renowned Dutch painter of fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. His real name was Jheronimus (or Jeroen) Anthonissen van Aken and El Bosco in Spanish. Hieronymus Bosch was born sometime around 1450 in a family of artists & artisans, and therefore, grew up learning several art skills. His childhood was spent in the city of 's-Hertogenbosch or 'Den Bosch,' which had a number of glassmakers. They deeply inspired Hieronymus Bosch vis-a-vis his artistry. In 1463, a major fire destroyed about 4000 homes in the town. This incident is believed to have influenced young Bosch, resulting in his usage of the images of demons, half-human animals, and machines in his paintings. The objective might have been to create fear and confusion in the minds of people.

Hieronymus Bosch lived during the 'Dark Ages,' when the world was undergoing a transition from the Gothic to the Renaissance period. During this phase, fear and violence were rampant, and the church was in a position of power. Uncontrolled and the ruthless rulers of the era compounded the woes of the common person. Bosch was a sensitive artist with a keen observation. He could lift these images from everyday life onto his canvas for painting. Hieronymus Bosch's works of art are mainly the morbid interpretations of hell, death, sin, and folly. His works were much ahead of his times, as he specialized in the use of 'Symbolism' and 'Iconography.' A few examples of these symbols include 'fruit' for carnal pleasure, 'flames' for the fires of hell, 'mussel shells' for infidelity, 'ice skaters' for folly, 'eggs' for sexual creation, and 'ears' for gossip.

At the age of thirty, around 1479-81, Bosch married Aleyt Goyaerts van den Meervenne, the daughter of one of the wealthiest families in 's-Hertogenbosch. The couple then moved to Oirschot. He later became a member of the famous religious group, 'The Brotherhood of Our Lady,' of 's-Hertogenbosch. Famous among Hieronymus' works are "The Garden of Earthly Delights," a 'Triptych' that was filled with the symbols of sin. His other works include "Death and the Miser," "The Ship of Fools," "Christ Carrying the Cross," where Bosch expresses his views on religion, "The Haywain," and "The Temptation of St. Anthony."

Bosch sold his paintings to illustrious buyers and received hefty commissions from them. When he became very successful, Hieronymus changed his surname from van Aken to Bosch, in order to propagate the name of its native place, 's-Hertogenbosch. Bosch was fascinated with religion, politics, astrology, black & white magic, and alchemy. His fascinations remained at an intellectual level and were never experimental. Hieronymus Bosch died on August 09, 1516. His works are considered an inspiration to the 'Surrealist' movement that started in the twentieth century.

Annette Labedzki received her BFA at the Emily Carr College of Art and Design in Vancouver, B.C. Canada. She has more than 25 years experience. She is the founder and developer of an online art gallery featuring original art from all over the world. It is a great site for art collectors to buy original art. Is is also a venue for artists to display and sell their art . Artists can join for free and their image upload is unlimited. Please visit the website at http://www.labedzki-art.com

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Works by Bosch began to be collected by well-known art-lovers at an early date. They included the Archduchess Margaret, sister of Philip the Handsome, William of Orange and the Archduke Ernest as well as less noble citizens of Amsterdam, Haarlem and Antwerp, amongst whom were Rubens.

The most fortunate of these collectors was King Philip II of Spain. He acquired from the estate of Charles V's beloved friend and confidant, the humanist and antiquarian Felipe de Guevara, who devoted a paragraph to Bosch in his Comentarios de la Pintura, six Works by the master, two of which have survived. Quite a number of others seem to have come into the possession of the Hapsburg monarch at a slightly later period. One of these productions, a table-top painted with the Seven Deadly Sins, was kept by Philip in his bedroom as a reminder of his own mortality. His intense appreciation of Bosch's art is clear from a passage in one of the king's confidential letters to his daughter. A detailed description of the painter's works preserved in the Escorial was written in 1605 by the lay brother Jose de Siguenza.

Hieronymus Bosch
Book by Ludwig von Baldass; H. N. Abrams, 1960