Pieter Bruegel the Elder: Prints and Drawings [Hardcover]

Associate Curator Nadine M. Orenstein (Editor)

Book Description

Series: Metropolitan Museum of Art Series | Publication Date: September 1, 2001

Pieter Bruegel the Elder (1525/30-1569) was a remarkable draftsman and designer of prints as well as a great painter. His independent drawings and designs for engravings and etchings, which were carried out by the leading printmakers of his day, have fascinated scholars and the general public alike since they were created. They have recently been the subject of research that has given rise to a reevaluation of the parameters of Bruegel's oeuvre. The new scholarship has been brought to bear in the texts of the present volume, which accompanies a major exhibition of 140 of Bruegel's prints and drawings to be shown at the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam, from May to August 2001 and at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, from September to December 2001. An international group of experts discusses the new Bruegel who has emerged from recent studies, in essays on the artist's life, his contributions as a draftsman and as a printmaker, the survival of his art, and his relationship to the humanism of his day. They also illuminate his genius in entries on all the works in the exhibition. Every work is illustrated and rich comparative illustrations are included. Provenances and references for every work, a bibliography, and an index are supplied.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Accompanying an exhibit at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art, Pieter Bruegel the Elder: Drawings and Prints, edited by Nadine M. Orenstein, features the lesser known works of this famous 16th-century Flemish artist. In the introduction and essays, seven scholars, including museum director Philippe de Montebello, Manfred Sellink, Michiel C. Plomp and the editor, explore diverse biographical and artistic craft issues e.g., all that is known for certain of Bruegel's life is that, though he painted peasants, and early biographers dubbed him the "`Peasant Bruegel,'" he was in fact an urban intellectual. The exhibit treats these drawings in a new light thanks to the "transformative insight" of the late Hans Mielke i.e., new attributions to Bruegel or his circle, such as a sketch formerly attributed to Hieronymous Bosch. The book features 274 illustrations (108 in color): Bruegel's 54 works alongside works by his colleagues, predecessors and successors.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Known to his contemporaries as the "second Hieronymous Bosch," Pieter Bruegel the Elder (1525/30-69) was a consummate draftsman. While his allegorical paintings of peasants are more familiar today, his print designs were widely copied for several generations. As to his drawings, only 61 remain of what was likely a large body of work, including many landscapes; it is believed that his wife was asked to burn many of them as socially inflammatory. For this catalog, which accompanies a traveling exhibition that just closed at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art, the associate curator of the museum's department of drawings has assembled an international group of experts to share what little is known about this artist as well as current research into his complete oeuvre. Oddly, this is the first exhibition of its kind, with 104 drawings and prints by Bruegel and his followers. Given the unique coverage of Bruegel and other period artists as well as the printmaking history, this book is essential for art collections, but it is too specialized for smaller libraries on a tight budget. Susan Lense, Upper Arlington P.L., OH

Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Metropolitan Museum of Art (September 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300090145
• ISBN-13: 978-0300090147
• Product Dimensions: 12.3 x 9.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #167,001 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A special feature, December 12, 2007

By 

D K - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pieter Bruegel the Elder: Prints and Drawings (Hardcover)

... A special feature of this book is that many of the drawings and engravings are on facing pages, or else on the same page so that they may be compared. As the engravings were done by others, the chance to make comparisons is delightful. The drawings have a warm light brownish tint from both the ink and paper and the engravings are black and white. There are days and hours of visual interest here.
... The text is informative; both scholarly and readable. The main catalogue has a huge 16 page bibliography (3 columns per page) and an index. The first 84 pages contain 5 chapters, by different authors on aspects of his work. Detailed information on provenances, literature and sizes are also provided. there are 274 illustrations.
... Also quality paper has been used in the book; highly recommended for the 'Pieter Bruegel the elder' lover.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Un artiste pour toutes les saisons, surtout l'hiver, January 14, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Pieter Bruegel the Elder: Prints and Drawings (Hardcover)

L'artiste est un grand maitre lorsque ses oeuvres sont impactants, d'un gout eternel. En fait, le Paysage d'hiver de Pieter Bruegel pere se trouve entre les oeuvres d'art les plus copies et imites du monde. La plupart des quarantaines de ses peintures survivantes datent de la derniere decade de sa vie. Il est le peintre incomparable de la comedie humaine, dans l'Ane a l'ecole; des paysages flamands au style italien, dans Paysage emboise avec une vue lointaine; des paysans, dans Kermis du St George; et des proverbes, dans Des grands poissons mangent des petits poissons. Il honore les manuscrits enlumines et les miniatures, dans la Tour de Babel. Ses dessins destines aux gravures sont des chefs-d'oeuvres de details, grains, nuances et textures.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars wonderful book of illustrations., February 15, 2009

By 

M. S. Edwards "cristobal" (santiago , chile) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Pieter Bruegel the Elder: Prints and Drawings (Hardcover)

This is an excellent book of illustrations. The text is good also, but the quality and format of this book is great for studying Bruegel.