by rublev » Sun Mar 02, 2014 12:52 pm
Well Bela that is an interesting question. Not much is know about Bruegel which is surprising considering how popular he is so his motivation behind that painting is unknown. I do not know if Bruegel was a religious man, but like many other medieval and renaissance painters, death, its inevitability... and i suppose here its creativity, seems to be the first point of call thematically. Indeed, i believe this picture hangs opposite Bosch's the garden of earthly delights in Madrid. If i may digress, i like to think that this painting, while perhaps on first view having religious connotations, is actually one of the futility of religion. A cry of the secular! Arise thy humanist! No redemption, no salvation, no hope! Leave your cross at home! A nihilist claims this brush and palette. Pondering further, perhaps it would be better to view this as an early form of anti war propaganda? The futility of war? After all, it was painted during the Spanish religious crusade / campaign against Protestants throughout Holland and the low countries, where there was little in the way of women and children being spared from the horrors of battle. What are these... horrors of the battle...? Horrors of war? War destroys all, taking the earth and its people into a darkness that is both uncompromising and hollow.
Thank you that concludes art history 1034 next week please remember to read chapters 8 - 10 of my new book entitled 'why i don't paint' available all good bookstores goodbye.