Pieter Bruegel the Elder
By Jacob Comstock
Biography
Pieter Bruegel the Elder was born in 1525 in Breda, Netherlands.
Where did he spend most of their life?
Bruegel spent most of his life in Northern England around Belgium and Netherlands, but he did travel around Europe as well.
Describe his education or training.
Bruegel's artistic training is not known, but it is speculated that he was born into a family of painters. Therefore, he would have learned from his family.
Describe his lifestyle.
Although it is speculated that Bruegel was born into a family of painters, it is unlikely because he was most likely not a peasant. After becoming a master of the Antwerp guild of St. Luke, he traveled around Europe. He decided to stop in Bruegel, Belgium, and Bruegel got married there. There, his art improved in quantity and quality.
What type of art did he create?
Bruegel was a painter. Some of his works include The Harvesters, Return of the Hunters, and The Tower of Babel.
Who were his patrons?
Bruegel worked for a printing company named Four Winds before he moved to Belgium. There, one of his wealthy patrons commissioned a set of six paintings depicting different seasons.
Art Work
This piece is called Return of the Hunters.
When was this piece created?
This piece was part of the six commissioned pieces mentioned earlier.
Where might you see this piece today?
This piece is located in a museum.
What was so significant about this piece?
This piece depicts hunters returning from from hunting. This humanist aspect attracted patrons to this piece.
Why do I find this piece so interesting?
I like this piece because of the general aspect of the hunters returning, and looking down on the village below them. It just looks interesting overall.
How does this piece relate to a Renaissance "ism?"
This piece shows Humanism because the focus of the piece is on people, with no religious focus.
Works Cited
AR: Pieter Brueghel the Elder
TI: Return of the Hunters
DT: 1565
DS: Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna
DS: Inv. 1838
AA: ARTstor
CN: LESSING_ART_1039490404
UR: http://library.artstor.org/library/secure/ViewImages?id=%2FThWdC8hIywtPygxFTx5TnQkVn0veQ%3D%3D