Little is known about the life of the Dutchman Peter Brueghel the Elder, the key source of information about him is the 1604 book written by Karel Van Mander. About forty paintings and six dozen prints of Brueghel the Elder have survived to this day. His work can be called original, although sometimes the influence of other Dutch masters can be traced here.
Training in painting, first engravings and acquaintance with the work of Bosch
Where and when Bruegel the Elder was born is not known for certain. Most researchers believe that this happened around 1525 in one of the Dutch provinces. There is practically no information about his family, about who his parents were.
From the mid-forties, Brueghel studied graphics in Antwerp, in the studio of Peter Cook van Alst, the court painter Charles V of Habsburg. Bruegel was associated with this workshop until 1550, that is, until the death of the teacher.
In 1551, Brueghel was admitted to the Antwerp guild of painters. In the same year, he got a job in Jerome Kok’s workshop “Four Winds”. Jerome Kok was engaged in printing and selling prints, and, apparently, made good money on this. It is known that according to Bruegel's black-and-white drawings, engravings "Donkey at school" and "Big fish eat small ones" were made here.
Once in the Four Winds, Brueghel the Elder saw prints (prints) from the paintings of the famous medieval surrealist Bosch, and they made a huge impression on him. Soon, he even drew his variations on the plots depicted in these prints.
The Fall of Icarus and other important paintings
In 1557, Brueghel created a series of prints dedicated to the seven deadly sins. And in 1558 he finished work on the canvas "The Fall of Icarus." This amazing canvas shows the tragedy of the ancient hero Icarus as something everyday. It is as if no one notices her: a plowman, a fisherman and a shepherdess are busy with their usual affairs.
In 1563, Bruegel married the daughter of the late teacher Van Alst, Maken, and in the same year moved with her to the city of Brussels. Maken subsequently gave birth to one daughter from her husband and two sons - Peter (the Younger) and Ian. Both of them, when they grew up, also began to professionally engage in painting.
In 1564, Brueghel the Elder created the paintings “Adoration of the Magi” and “Portrait of an Old Woman” (and this is the only portrait in Brueghel’s entire heritage, he didn’t write them to order, according to researchers of his biography). And in 1565, a cycle of six magnificent paintings "The Seasons" appears. This cycle includes the paintings "Shadow Day. Spring", "The Return of Studs. Autumn", "Haymaking", "Hunters in the Snow", "Harvest. Summer". Unfortunately, the sixth canvas has not survived to our times.
All paintings included in the cycle have the same format. Most likely, they were ordered for themselves by a wealthy Antwerp merchant named Jongelink. Then the merchant had some problems and, in need of a cash loan, he pledged these masterpieces, and could not buy it back.
