Bruegel
Printed

Pieter Bruegel the Elder (1526/30–1569) is regarded as one of the outstanding artists of sixteenth-century Dutch art. His works transport viewers into a fascinating world of humorous visual ideas and enigmatic motifs. Although he is today primarily known as a painter, he made a name for himself early on through his designs for prints.

In the exhibition, the Städel Museum brings together some 60 exceptional prints, about 45 of which are based on Bruegel’s drawings. They reveal him as a unique innovator and an inimitable storyteller, whose motifs range from vast landscapes to secular and religious allegories and scenes of everyday life.

Bruegel’s prints were created in close collaboration with the Antwerp publisher Hieronymus Cock and his wife, Volcxken Diericx. They convey a vivid impression of the artist’s unique visual world, which combines observation and imagination. Drawing on his fondness for the detailed, grotesque motifs of Hieronymus Bosch and his broad knowledge of pictorial and thematic traditions, he developed new forms of representation for traditional themes. His compositions, which frequently employ exaggeration, make the audience laugh while simultaneously prompting reflection. Bruegel addresses human weaknesses and social ills, highlights the grandeur of nature, and simultaneously turns his gaze to everyday social interactions. To this day, his works offer surprisingly contemporary perspectives on fundamental questions of human values.

The starting point for the exhibition at the Städel is Bruegel’s prints from the museum’s own collection, of which around thirty are on display. This selection is complemented by loans from the Albertina in Vienna and the Staatliche Graphische Sammlung in Munich. In addition, the exhibition features two paintings by his son, Pieter Brueghel the Younger, as well as further sheets from the Städel Museum’s impressive collection of Dutch prints, including works after Frans Floris, Lambert Lombard and Raphael.

Curator 
Dr Astrid Reuter (Head of Prints and Drawings before 1800, Städel Museum)

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