Hieronymus Bosch : Garden of Earthly Delights

by Belting, Hans

• ISBN13: 9783791333205
• ISBN10: 3791333208
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-04-28
• Publisher: Prestel Pub

Summary

Few paintings inspire the kind of intense study and speculation as the "Garden of Earthly Delights," the luminous triptych by Nertherlandish master Hieronymus Bosch. The painting has been interpreted as a heretical masterpiece, an opulent illustration of the Creation and a premonition of the end of the world. In this new flexi-cover edition of the book, renowned art historian Hans Belting offers a radical reinterpretation of the work, which he sees not as apocalyptic, but utopian, portraying how the world would exist had the Fall not happened. Taking readers through each panel, Belting discusses various schools of thought and explores Bosch's life and times. Enhanced by a fold-out reproduction of the original painting, this fascinating study is an important contribution to the literature and theory surrounding one of the world's most enigmatic artists.

Table of Contents

A Tale of Fascination	p. 7
In a Painted Labyrinth of the Gaze	p. 20
The World before Humankind	p. 21
The World as Earthly Paradise	p. 25
The World as Hell	p. 35
Another World	p. 47
The Artist in his Home Town	p. 59
In the Palais Nassau	p. 71
A Gap in the Bible	p. 85
Cardinal Grimani's Altarpiece	p. 90
A New Concept in Art in Dialogue with Literature	p. 96
Rival Dreams of Paradise	p. 99
The Isle of Nowhere	p. 107
Fiction and Humanist Portraiture: An Excursus	p. 113
Summary	p. 121
Bibliography	p. 124
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