MONSTERS???

HIERONYMUS BOSCHHieronymus, or Jerome, Bosch, b. c.1450, d. August 1516, spent his entire artistic career in the small Dutch town of Hertogenbosch, from which he derived his name.

The Extraction of the Stone of Madness (The Cure of Folly) c. 1475-80 (200 Kb); Oil on board, 48 x 35 cm (18 7/8 x 13 3/4"); Museo del Prado, Madrid Removing "stones" from the head was a fairly common medieval operation; however, for some reason Bosch has painted a flower as the object being removed

c.1485 (50 Kb); Prado, Madrid The Seven Deadly Sins is a painted rectangle with a central image of the eye of God, with Christ watching the world. The Seven Deadly Sins, depicted through scenes of worldly transgression, are arranged around the circular shape. The circular layout with god in the centre represents gods all seeing eye No sin goes unnoticed. In the corners of the image appear the "Four Last Things" mentioned in late medieval spiritual handbooks: Deathbed, the Last Judgment, Heaven, and Hell, all of which are favorite themes of separate Bosch panels.

Paradise Left wing (180 Kb); 147 x 66 cm

Haywain Central panel (210 Kb); 140 x 100 cm

Hell Right wing (180 Kb); 147 x 66 cm

The subject of sin and its punishments was central to all of Bosch's art. Another famous triptych, the Haywain (c.1485-90; Prado, Madrid), contains a similar progression of sin, from Eden to hell, across its panels. In the central panel sin is represented through the metaphor of a large wagonload of hay for which a greedy world grasps. All the while, the wagon is being pulled by demons towards the right panel - which shows one of Bosch's earliest depictions of hell.

Bosch's most famous and unconventional picture is The Garden of Earthly Delights (c.1500; Prado, Madrid) which, like most of his other ambitious works, is a large, 3-part altarpiece, called a triptych. This painting was probably made for the private enjoyment of a noble family. It is named for the luscious garden in the central panel, which is filled with cavorting nudes and giant birds and fruit. The triptych depicts the history of the world and the progression of sin. Beginning on the outside shutters with the creation of the world, the story progresses from Adam and Eve and original sin on the left panel to the torments of hell, a dark, icy, yet fiery nightmarish vision, on the right. The Garden of Delights in the center illustrates a world deeply engaged in sinful pleasures. In reference to astrological alignments at the time this was painted, a lot of the instruments of torture are also musical instruments.

Creation of the World Outer wings (shutters), depicting the third day of creation (140 Kb)

Garden of Earthly Delights (Ecclesia's paradise)

Central panel (280 Kb)

The Earthly Paradise (Garden of Eden)

Left wing (180 Kb)

Hell

Right wing (180 Kb)

Bird-Headed Monster

Detail from right wing (320 Kb)

The unique vision of BoschThe extraordinary painter Hieronymus Bosch (c. 1450-1516) stands apart from the prevailing Flemish traditions in painting. His style was unique, strikingly free, and his symbolism, unforgettably vivid, remains unparalleled to this day. Marvellous and terrifying, he expresses an intense pessimism and reflects the anxieties of his time, one of social and political upheaval. Very little is known about Bosch, which somehow seems fitting since his work is so enigmatic. We know that he adopted the name of the Dutch town of s'Hertogenbosch (near Antwerp) as his own, that he belonged to an ultra-orthodox religious community called the Brotherhood of Mary, and that in his own day he was famous. Many of his paintings are devotional, and there are several on the theme of the Passion. He is specially famous for his fantastic, demon-filled works, one of which is The Temptation of St Anthony.

Outer Wings Grisaille on panel (180 Kb), 131 x 53 cm Left: Arrest of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane Right: Christ Carrying the Cross

Left Wing Flight and Failure of St Anthony (190 Kb), 131.5 x 53 cm

Right Wing St Anthony in Meditation (190 Kb), 131.5 x 53 cm

Central panel Temptation of St Anthony (210 Kb), 131.5 x 119 cm (52 x 47 in)

ODILON REDONRedon, Odilon (1840-1916). French painter and graphic artist, one of the outstanding figures of Symbolism. He had a retiring life, first in his native Bordeaux, then from 1870 in Paris, and until he was in his fifties he worked almost exclusively in black and white, in charcoal drawings and lithographs. In these he developed a highly distinctive repertoire of weird subjects (strange amoeboid creatures, insects, and plants with human heads and so on), influenced by the writings of Edgar Allen Poe. He remained virtually unknown to the public until the publication of J.K. Huysmans's celebrated novel A Rebours in 1884; the book's hero, a disenchanted aristocrat who lives in a private world of perverse delights, collects Redon's drawings, and with his mention in this classic expression of decadence, Redon too became associated with the movement.

Guardian Spirit of the Waters 1878 (210 Kb); Charcoal, 46.6 x 37.6 cm; The Art Institute of Chicago

Spirit of the Forest (Specter from a Giant Tree) 1880 (210 Kb); Charcoal and black chalk heightened wiith white chalk, 45.7 x 28.5 cm; The Woodner Family Collection, New York

The Crying Spider

1881 (230 Kb); Charcoal, 49.5 x 37.5 cm; Private collection, The Netherlands

Cactus Man 1881 (260 Kb); Charcoal, 49 x 32.5 cm; The Woodner Family Collection, New York

Mystery undated (160 Kb); Oil on canvas, 73 x 53.9 cm (28 3/4 x 21 1/4 in); The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C.

During the 1890s Redon turned to painting and revealed remarkable powers as a colorist that had lain dormant. Much of his early life had been unhappy, but after undergoing a religious crisis in the early 1890s and a serious illness in 1894-95, he was transformed into a much more buoyant and cheerful personality, expressing himself in radiant colors in mythological scenes and flower paintings. He showed equal facility in oils and pastel. The flower pieces, in particular, were much admired by Matisse, and the Surrealists regarded Redon as one of their precursors. He was a distinguished figure by the end of his life, although still a very private person. Early charcoals (1878-85)

Les yeux clos (Closed Eyes) 1890 (190 Kb); Oil on canvas mounted on cardboard, 44 x 36 cm (17 3/8 x 14 1/4 in); Musee d'Orsay, Paris

The Golden Cell 1892 (190 Kb); Oil and gold metallic paint on paper prepared with white ground, 30.1 x 24.6 cm; The British Museum

Woman with a Yellow Bodice c. 1899 (240 Kb); Pastel, 66 x 50 cm; Museum Kroller-Mueller, Otterlo, The Netherlands

Ophelia c. 1900-05 (210 Kb); Pastel on paper mounted on board, 50.5 x 67.3 cm (19 7/8 x 26 1/2 in); The Woodner Collection

Parsifal

c. 1912 (160 Kb); Pastel on beige paper, 66 x 52 cm (26 x 20 1/2 in); Musee d'Orsay, Paris

The Cyclops c. 1914 (240 Kb); Oil on canvas, 64 x 51 cm; Museum Kroller-Mueller, Otterlo, The Netherlands

FRANCIS BACON

Bacon, Francis 1909-92, English painter; b. Ireland. Self-taught, he expressed the satirical, horrifying, and hallucinatory in such works as Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion (1944; Tate Gall., London).

Oil and sand on canvas; Three panels, each 198.1 x 144.8 cm (78 x 57 in); Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York

Oil on canvas; Three panels, each 198.1 x 147.3 cm (78 x 58 in); Collection of the artist (?)

Second Version of Triptych 1944

Head VI 1949 (290 Kb); Oil on canvas, 93.2 x 76.5 cm (36 5/8 x 30 1/8 in); Arts Council of Great Britain, London

Study for Crouching Nude 1952 (230 Kb); Oil and sand on canvas, 198.1 x 137.2 cm (78 x 54 in); The Detroit Institute of Arts

Study After Velazquez's Portrait of Pope Innocent X 1953 (200 Kb); Oil on canvas, 153 x 118.1 cm (60 1/4 x 46 1/2 in); Des Moines Art Center, Iowa

Man with Dog 1953 (150 Kb); Oil on canvas, 152.1 x 116.8 cm (59 7/8 x 46 in); Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo

Self-Portrait 1971 (200 Kb); Oil on canvas, 35.5 x 30.5 cm (14 x 12 in); Musee National d'Art Moderne, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris

MunchMelancolía1892-3Óleo sobre telaColección Rasmus Meyer, Bergen. Noruega.

EDWARD MUNCH

MunchEl grito1893Óleo sobre telaGalería Nacional de Oslo.(una de las versiones)

MunchAngst1896LitografíasNY, MoMA

HANNAH HOCH• PHOTOMONTAGE

Hannah HochBelleza extraña (izquierda) / The Sweet One (derecha)FotomontajesDe la serie “Museo etnográfico”1925-30