ART & ARTISTS: Hieronymus Bosch

Monday 4 December 2023

Hieronymus Bosch - part 1

Portrait of Hieronymus Bosch by David Kandel,
German School
© RMN-Grand Palais (Louvre Museum) - Thierry Le Mage

Hieronymus Bosch was born in the town of 's Hertogenbosch near Antwerp, from which he took his name. He was the son of a painter. He is famous for the fantastic and disturbing detail of his panel pictures. In his mature works Bosch developed an original and often macabre language of visual symbolism, sometimes a literal translation of verbal metaphors found in the Bible.

Bosch appears to have spent the majority of his life in 's-Hertogenbosch (Bois-le-Duc), although his family probably came from Aachen in Germany. His chronology is uncertain, but the Gallery's ‘Christ Mocked’ is probably an early work, one of many representing episodes of the Passion of Christ. Bosch's most famous work is perhaps 'The Garden of Earthly Delights' at the Prado, Madrid. In the 17th century Van Mander wrote

'Who will be able to tell of all the weird and strange ideas which were in the mind of Jeronimus Bos, and his expressions of them by his brush? He painted gruesome Pictures.’ Bosch's work particularly influenced Bruegel in the 16th century. His paintings were collected by Philip II of Spain, and in the 20th century were cited by the Surrealists as precursors of their own visions.

This is part 1 of a 3-part series on the works of Hieronymus Bosch:

before 1467 Instruments of the Passion of Christ
by workshop of Bosch
oil on wood panel 15.6 x 68.2 cm
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Instruments of the Passion of Christ
detail

1467 Instruments of the Passion of Christ
detail

1475-80 The Extraction of the Stone of Madness
oil on wood panel 48 x 35 cm
Museo del Prado, Madrid

c1475 The Adoration of the Magi

This tranquil scene, with its tunnelling perspective and sensitively rendered faces, is characteristic of Bosch’s works before he made his more famous scenes of hell. The stage-like setting, with a curtain held aloft by angels, may indicate the influence of religious plays performed in Bosch’s hometown of 's Hertogenbosch. By the late fifteenth century, the three Magi were clearly differentiated to represent their varied regional origins. The Black king is prominently featured and elaborately attired, with a crowned, feathered fez and gold collar and belt with hanging Turkish curved sword and jewelled hand shield.

c1475 The Adoration of the Magi
oil and gold on oak panel 71.1 x 56.5 cm
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

1482-86 Visions of the Hereafter
oil on wood panels
Gallerie Accademia, Venice
(see details below)

1482-86 Visions of the Hereafter
detail

c1485-90 Death and the Miser
oil on panel 93 x 31 cm
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.

n.d. Death and the Miser
© Louvre Museum, dist. RMN-Grand Palais

c1489 Saint John the Baptist in the Wilderness
oil on panel 48 x 40 cm
Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid

1490-95 Saint Jerome in Prayer
oil on wood panel 80 x 60.7 cm
Museum of Fine Arts, Ghent, Belgium

1490-95 Saint Jerome in Prayer
detail

1490-1500 Saint Cristopher carrying the Christ Child
oil on panel 112.7 x 71.8 cm
Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid

1490-1500 The Ship of Fools
oil on panel 58.1 x 32.8 cm
Museo Nacional del Prado, Milan

1490-1500 The Ship of Fools
© Louvre Museum, dist. RMN-Grand Palais

1490-1510 The Garden of Earthly Delights:

The Garden of Earthly Delights
Museo del Prado, Madrid
exterior panels

The Garden of Earthly Delights triptych
oil on oak panels, 205.5 cm × 384.9 cm
Museo del Prado, Madrid

The Garden of Eden

Ecclesia's Paradise

Ecclesia's Paradise
detail

Hell

Hell
detail

1493 Hermit Saints triptych
oil on oak panels
Gallerie dell’Accademia, Venice
St. Anthony (left) 85.4 x 29.2 cm
St. Jerome (middle) 85.7 x 60 cm
St. Giles (right) 85.7 x 28.9 cm