Page 14 - flip-wordtures

Chapter 2

Ideological Context

Pieter Bruegel The Elder is one of the ar�sts that handled subject ma�er and translated his opinion and vision
into pain�ngs. His pain�ngs had a forma�ve influence on the people in his age. He specialized in genre pain�ng
which is pain�ng scenes of everyday life. This type of art developed par�cularly in Holland in the seventeenth
century.
I found Bruegel’s art to be very inspiring and gave me more depth and defini�on to how important and sa�sfy-
ing it is to document events in such an asr�s�c way. Bruegel’s art is very defini�ve and one piece has more than
one story to tell. Ofcourse all of this was done by hand and on paper. The connec�on i am trying to point out here
is how i am also trying through digital media to talk about everyday cultural and personal concerns through
gollages and short 2D clips.
“ Gazing at such engrossing and intensely vital images of human life and nature as his pain�ngs of proverbs and
children’s games, fes�ve peasants, the seasons, and religious subjects like the tower of Babel, Christ on the road
to Calvary, and the triumph of death” (Zagorin,2003).

Here is a pain�ng of the 1559 Netherland
Proverbs. On the bo�om right we can see a man
holding a lantern. There is an old Flemish proverb
“He seeks the ax” which today holds the meaning
“ He seeks an excuse”. The lantern is lit yet does
not appear to cast any light, despite the dark
shadow where it is situated. “Given Bruegel’s
penchant for cleverly juxtaposing details and
mo�fs so as to create resonances and complicate
their significance, we must ask whether there is
some purpose to this dim lantern” (Meadow,
1996).
Likely, before reading the quote and interpreta-
�on of my designs, i would like the poeple look-
ing at my work to try and make an idea up of
what it is i am trying to deliver. Perhaps from
another persons prespec�ve, another story is
told.
looking at every other person in this art piece, we
can see there is something going on. someone is
screaming or asking for help, someone else is
fishing, others are seeking help from a chris�an
man. I am assuming Pieter Bruegel had more
than one message to deliver in this piece. That is
what is rewarding from this kind of art. It is a
story on its own.

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