In which the indelible strangeness of Hieronymus Bosch’s triptych, The Garden of Earthly Delights (c. 1490–1510), is presented to us in the highest resolution. (I should say presented again since Google’s Art Project/Cultural Institute/whatever-it’s-called-this-week had a browsable version of their own in 2009 but this seems to have vanished. So much for the primacy of the Googleverse, etc, etc.) I’d always encourage people to see paintings in situ when possible but it remains a fact that very old and well-known works of art are difficult to study for any length of time in a crowded gallery. The more valuable works are also closely guarded by attendants who dissuade anyone from getting too close to those fragile surfaces, so it’s left to books or websites such as this one to give us the details. Not all paintings warrant this kind of attention, of course, but the crowded panels of Bosch and Brueghel the Elder certainly do. In addition to wandering among the figures you can also opt for a guided tour although bear in mind that the meaning (if any) of many of these details has never been resolved. Via MetaFilter.
Previously on { feuilleton }
• Jacques Brissot’s Hay Wain
• Magnifying the Prado
…Bosch’s 500th celebrations are just starting in his home town this month …. I take your point about seeing them in-situ, but they seem to have managed to get the majority of his masterworks together in one place. The anniversary seems to be a good excuse for a more general Bosch Bash in the town … I’m off!
One of my favourite paintings! The tour is delightful, thanks for the nudge to revisit.
I dig that you’ve been going through a Can phase, too. *)