on oak panel, 118 × 164.5 cm
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna
He applies himself to his subjects which are drawn from the daily lives of the Flemish people with a primary concern for sincerity before satire. It was only after completing a scene of daily life that he would attach a proverb or a certain moral sense to it. His work is so natural that he frequently does not seem to have set out with the preconceived idea of painting a particular moral lesson or proverb.
The Fight between Carnival and Lent (detail)
1559
Oil on oak panel, 118 × 164.5 cm
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna
Pieter Bruegel the Elder’s Beginnings
Nothing is less certain than Bruegel’s date of birth, but there are also many questions regarding where he was born. Because he is recorded in the liggeren or ‘Record of Artists’ of the guild of Saint Luke in Antwerp under the name of ‘Peeter Brueghels’, it is concluded that he was from the village of Bruegel. Nevertheless, one fact is well known, Bruegel was the son of a peasant.
The Fight between Carnival and Lent (detail)
1559
Oil on oak panel, 118 × 164.5 cm
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna
Only three dates are certain in the life of Bruegel the Elder: the date of his acceptance as a master in the Guild of Saint Luke, the date of his marriage, and that of his death. Only hypotheses exist regarding Bruegel’s date of birth. It was in 1551 that Bruegel was added as a master to the liggeren of the Guild of Saint Luke in Antwerp. According to the same documents, the average length of an apprenticeship was six years.
Children’s Games
1560
Oil on wood, 118 × 161 cm
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna
Thus, it was probably in 1545, between the ages of fifteen and twenty, that Bruegel became the apprentice of Pieter Coecke, his first master. His artistic calling was unquestionably awakened long before the end of his apprenticeship. Given his death in 1569, it seems unlikely that he began lessons with Coecke any earlier than 1545. Such a young age at death is hard to believe, given the significance of his work.
Children’s Games (detail)
1560
Oil on wood, 118 × 161 cm
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna
Pieter Bruegel the Elder had two sons and a daughter (Pieter, Jan, and Mayken) with his wife, Mayken Coecke, the daughter of his master Pieter Coecke. The elder son, Pieter, nicknamed ‘Hell Brueghel’, copied many of his father’s works and treated similar subjects with variations. He was particularly known for his images of devilry and Hell, hence his nickname.
Children’s Games (detail)
1560
Oil on wood, 118 × 161 cm
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna
It is difficult to ascertain the originality of his work where vulgarity seems to have replaced the careful observation and powerful realism of his father. Nevertheless, Pieter Brueghel the Younger was much appreciated by his contemporaries. Van Dyck painted his portrait and the excellent painter of animals, Frans Snyders, was one of his students.
The Rabbit Hunt
1560
Etching, 22.3 × 29.1 cm
The Royal Library of Albert I, Brussels
His brother, Jan Brueghel the Elder, nicknamed ‘Velvet Brueghel’ for the richness of his palette, was by far the better painter. Jan’s talent was very personal and full of charm, and he painted many canvases in collaboration with Rubens. He was an extremely talented painter of flowers, capturing their splendour and heady perfumed atmosphere. Pieter Brueghel the Younger and Jan Brueghel the Elder both had sons that also became painters. Pieter III, son of Pieter the Younger, and Jan the Younger, son of Jan the Elder.
Sailing Vessels
1560-1565
Engraving, 22.1 × 28.7 cm
British Museum, London
Anne Brueghel, the sister of Jan Brueghel the Younger, would marry David Teniers the Younger, thus assuring the continuation of one of the most numerous and glorious of the many dynasties of Netherlandish painters.
After learning the basics from Coecke, Pieter Bruegel the Elder left to work in the studio of Hieronymus Cock, who was more a merchant of paintings and engravings than he was painter. He acquired a great deal of fame as an engraver and created a large number of plates for his shop.
Christ’s Descent into Limbo
1561
Pen and brown ink, 23.1 × 30.1 cm
Graphische Sammlung, Albertina, Vienna
At the beginning of his career, Bruegel composed many mountainous backgrounds that were complicated, picturesque, and imposing. He submitted to the influence of Cock’s studio, docilely accepting the lessons that enabled him to properly interpret nature and already furnishing his master with a profitable product.
The Resurrection
c. 1562
Pen and brown ink highlighted with grey paint, 43.1 × 30.7 cm
Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam
Among these, he must have sensed a natural attraction for the fantastical subjects of Hieronymus Bosch, and the comical popular scenes of Pieter Aertsen and Quentin Matsys, from which may have sprung the spark that would set his genius afire.
In keeping with the fashion of the times, Bruegel exhibited a strong and legitimate desire to study the Italian masterpieces in Italy.
