Pieter Bruegel was a prominent Northern European artist during the Renaissance. His works is landscape paintings and rural life are outstanding, especially in the Hunters in the Snow and The Peasant Wedding. As well as Landscape with the fall of Icarus. Which is a subtle landscape.

In legend Bruegel’s work influences the Dutch entry of the golden age of painting. Unfortunately, he die at the peak of his artist life in his early 40s. But both his children and grandchildren are famous painters of different styles, pass down over the centuries, becoming a famous European family of painters.

Practice skills to find experiences from north to south

Pieter Bruegel (father) is a Dutch native born about 1525-1530 in Breda in the south of the Netherlands. There is no clear evidence of his early life, but between 1545 and 1550, Brock was a follower of Pieter Coecke van Aelst, a prominent artist who was both the painter, sculptor and architect of Antwerp. Major cities in the north of Belgium His teacher died in the late 1550s, so he went to work as an altar assistant in Mechelen near Antwerp for about a year before joining the Professional Artists’ Guild. Of Antwerp in 1551, after a while he decided to travel to Italy to experience.

Bruegel traveled from Antwerp in northern Europe via France to Italy. Stopped in Rome for a while, and continued south until the end of Italy before returning to Rome again. Over the years he travel to Italy, where he learn Italian painting with a different style and technique to the Northern Flemish style. Bruegel returned to Antwerp in 1555 to work at Antwerp’s premier publishing house, Hieronymus Cock. Bruegel designs and draws manuscripts that will be carved for the prints. Bruegel’s early work was the Big Fish Eat Little Fish. But the Cock print was name after the famous painter Hieronymus Bosch in the past.

Famous printmaker of Antwerp

Brocgel designed the prints as a satire, metaphor and morality, based on some of the very popular styles of Hieronymus Bosch at the time. But he soon began to create a style of his own that was very different. Later, he focused on landscape images, adding mountainous elements, rural forests, and Flemish villages to urban landscapes with towers and city gates turned out to be panoramic views. Known as Large Landscapes, with its beautiful lines, creativity and expansive perspective, Breckle’s printmaking designs were so popular that Cock was able to sell prints from Brockle’s work. Across Europe thousands of pictures

Bruegel worked for 8 years with Cock’s “House of the Four Winds” in Antwerp, where he designed more than 40 prints for Cock during his time with the publisher. Bruegel began painting as well. Among his first notable paintings was Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, 1563. Bruegel married Mayken Coecke, daughter of Pieter Coecke van Aelst, a teacher in Brussels, and moved to. There permanently Once in Brussels, he switched to painting, but his printmaking journey did not end there, as he continued to design prints for Cock for the rest of his life. It’s just that the number has not decreased as much as what was done in Antwerp.

Pioneering and developing his own painting style

During the time of Bruegel’s life, art was primarily used to glorify the gods and build religious faith. Therefore, most of the paintings are present with stories about gods and religion, or portraits (portraits), while Bruegel, who has always created the paintings in conjunction with the printmaking design. I especially like landscape painting, especially panoramic landscape. Therefore, his early paintings were landscape paintings with stories related to mythology, gods or religion. And that’s where many of his early masterpieces came from: Landscape with the Fall of Icarus, The Triumph of Death and The Tower of Babel.

Another line of paintings Breckle that he likes to write is that of Dutch teachings and traditions. Often in a panoramic view from a height showing a large number of people doing activities. And Brocgel, who has often mastered the design of this type of theme typography, was able to draw excellent images. Outstanding works of the image in this genre are pictures Netherlandish Proverbs. The Fight Between Carnival and Lent and Children’s Games, Brockle continues to develop his paintings. Portraying the daily life of the rural people. And a number of interesting events in the community. Leading to a number of outstanding works. Other great paintings such as the Peasant Wedding, The Wedding Dance and The Peasant Dance, among others. These works are excellent paintings and become one of his signature additions to the landscape.

The unity of the folklore and the seasons

In 1565, Breckle painted the series Months of the Year, or The Seasons, depicting rural activities that take place each month that change with climate and seasons. In the Netherlands in the 16th century, six seasons were also divided into six of these paintings to represent each season, but only five have survived today, with The Hunters in the Snow, The Gloomy Day.

The Hay Harvest, The Harvesters and The Return of the Herd. This series combines two of Breckle’s highlights: landscape and country life. Each picture shows the villagers’ important activities during that month or season of the year amid beautiful climates and landscapes that vary with the seasons during that time.

In this series of paintings, The Hunters in the Snow, representing winter from December to January. It depicts a scene of calm, cool, and overcast days in winter. Three hunters return from the expedition. Disappointing with their dogs While many adults and children are preparing food outside the property. On the flat ground of the frozen valley, people were having fun playing ice hockey and skating. 

Further, there are rugged mountain peaks that do not exist in Belgium or Holland. Bruegel paints this intricately compos image. Reflecting the atmosphere and way of life of the rural people in a striking and strikingly beautiful way. This painting is one of Bruegel’s finest works and the masterpiece that made him famous. As well as being regarded as one of the most famous paintings in Western culture.

The ancestry of painters that passed through the centuries

Bruegel is one of the most famous painters of his generation. His work is highly regarded and in demand by art collectors. Some of his friends even praised him as “The most perfect painter of the century” ever. Unfortunately, this remarkable artist did not have the opportunity and time to create work as many other famous artists. Otherwise, we may have admired even more great works. Bruegel died at the height of his artist life in 1569 at the age of only his early 40s. He also had no chance to pass his painting skills to his two sons because he died when his son was only 5 and 1 year old.