BRUEGHEL THE ELDER, Pieter, Temperance from The World of Seven Virtues, c. 1560
Pieter Brueghel (1525-69), usually known as Pieter Brueghel the Elder to distinguish him from his elder son, was the first in a family of Flemish p… [Read biography »]
Signed Pieter Brueghel the Elder (1525 - 1569), Original Engraving, Temperance from The World of Seven Virtues, c. 1560  |
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| Artist: | Brueghel the Elder, Pieter (1525 - 1569) |
|---|---|
| Title: | Temperance from The World of Seven Virtues, c. 1560 |
| Medium: | Original Engraving |
| Image Size: | 11 1/2 in x 8 3/4 in (29.2 cm x 22.2 cm) |
| Sheet Size: | 11 1/2 in x 8 3/4 in (29.2 cm x 22.2 cm) |
| Framed Size: | 28 3/4 in x 26 1/8 in (73 cm x 66.4 cm) |
| Signed: | The signature of Bruegel is inscribed in the lower right: 'Bruegel' with 'Cock. Exc' in the lower left |
| Edition: | A lifetime impression from the only state of two by Philips Galle based on an original work by Pieter Bruegel |
| Condition: | This work is in excellent condition, a fine dark impression |
Price :Item# 2095 | $17,000 Happy New Year! To speak directly with the Director, Alex Adelman, please call (510) 777-9970 / 1-800-805-7060. |
| Description: | |
From the Seven Virtues series, this work illustrates the artist’s interpretation of temperance through a wealth of highly animated characters. Examining the studied figure and symbolic imagery, this work is full of intricately detailed groups enacting the virtues of moderation in behavior. Engraved in c. 1560, this piece is printed on a fine laid paper with a strong black impression. This work is engraved in reverse of a drawing dated 1560 in the Boymans Museum, Rotterdam. A lifetime impression from the only state of two by Philips Galle based on an original work by Pieter Bruegel featuring the inscribed text plate along the lower margin on watermarked paper dating the piece to c. 1556-1568 (Dolphin, Br. 5843-5851) . The signature of Bruegel is inscribed in the lower right: ‘Bruegel’ with ‘Cock. Exc’ in the lower left. Rich in detail and tonality, this work contains a buzzing of activity surrounding the central figure of Temperance. Identified as the title character through the label ‘Temperantia’ on the bottom of her robe, the central figure stands calmly with a clock on her head as the surrounding groups are busy with their work. Theatrically positioned as if set on a stage, the characters in the work evoke a sense of depth and volume through strong variations in value and strategically placed details receding into space. Said of this work, “The picture as a whole shows that Temperance is not conceived primarily as an avoidance of Gluttony. Rather, this Temperance might be regarded as the opposite or antidote to Sloth. For around her a marshaled examples of man’s useful, cultural, and—presumably—commendable activities.” (Klein 243) The lower text of the image translates as saying, We must look to it that we neither, given over to sensual pleasures, appear wasteful and luxuriant, nor, held by miserliness, live in filth and ignorance. Catalogue Raisonné & COA: 1. Bastelaer, René van. The Prints of Peter Bruegel the Elder, Catalogue Raisonné New Edition, Alan Wofsy Fine Arts: San Francisco, 1992. Listed and illustrated as catalogue raisonné no. 138 on pgs. 186-7. 2. Briquet, C.M. Les Filigranes, Dictionnaire Historique des Marques du Papier, Tome II Cl-K. Verlag: Leipzig, 1923. Watermark listed and illustrated as catalogue raisonné no. 5843-5851. 3. Klein, H. Arthur. Graphic Worlds of Peter Bruegel the Elder, Dover Publications: New York, 1963. Listed and illustrated as catalogue raisonné no. 54 on pgs. 132-3. 4. Orenstein, Nadine M., ed. for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Pieter Bruegel the Elder: Drawings and Prints, Yale University Press: New Haven, 2001. Listed and illustrated as catalogue raisonné nos. 76-7 on pgs. 19-1. 5. Sellink, M. Pieter Bruegel: The Complete Paintings, Drawings and Prints. Ludion: NY, 2007. Listed and illustrated as catalogue raisonné no. 93 on pg. 151. Detail on preparatory drawing for Charity is listed and illustrated as catalogue raisonné no. 86 on pg. 144. About the Framing: | |
Biography of Pieter Brueghel the Elder
Pieter Brueghel the Elder (1525 - 1569)
Pieter Brueghel (1525-69), usually known as Pieter Brueghel the Elder to distinguish him from his elder son, was the first in a family of Flemish painters. You'll often find his name spelled as Bruegel (Pieter spelled it like that from 1559 onwards) or Breugel or Breughel.
He was born in Breda in the Duchy of Brabant, which is now part of The Netherlands but back then part of the Flanders.
Note: Flanders or Vlaanderen and the Netherlands (aka known as Holland) or Nederland share the same language. It's called Flemish, or "Vlaams" in Belgium and Dutch, or "Nederlands" in The Netherlands. And the name Holland, although it's often taken to mean the whole of the Netherlands, is really part of that country only, the area of the provinces called Zuid Holland and Noord Holland (South and North Holland).
Brueghel was accepted as a master in the Antwerp painters' guild in 1551, after being an apprentice of Coecke van Aelst, a leading Antwerp artist, sculptor, architect, and designer of tapestry and stained glass. Brueghel traveled to Italy in 1551 or 1552, completing a number of paintings, mostly landscapes, there. Returning home in 1553, he settled in Antwerp but ten years later moved permanently to Brussels. He married van Aelst's daughter, Mayken, in 1563. His paintings, including his landscapes and scenes of peasant life, stress the absurd and vulgar, yet are full of zest and fine detail. They also expose human weaknesses and follies. He was sometimes called the Peasant Brueghel. But it was in nature that he found his greatest inspiration. His mountain landscapes have few parallels in European art. Popular in his own day, Bruegel engravings and paintings have remained consistently popular. Brueghel died in Brussels on Sept. 9, 1569.
