Cat. Budapest 2022
Between Hell and Paradise – The Enigmatic World of Hieronymus Bosch [Bernadett Tóth and Ágota Varga (eds.)] 2022
[Exhibition catalogue (Budapest, Museum of Fine Arts, 8 April- 17 July 2022), Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest, 2022]
The lavishly illustrated and attractively presented catalogue of the 2022 Bosch exhibition in the Budapest Museum of Fine Arts (Szépmüvészeti Múzeum). The actual catalogue of items on display is preceded by four introductory essays (see Silver 2022, Pokorny 2022, De Bruyn 2022c, and Falkenburg 2022) and has seven sections with comments by various authors (Bernadett Tòth, Larry Silver, Erwin Pokorny, Nils Büttner, Reindert Falkenburg, Eric De Bruyn, and others). Some of the entries on display in the exhibition are presented without a comment in the catalogue.
- Hieronymus Bosch in Times of Transition. With a special focus on presumed portraits of Bosch, on the altarpiece of the ’s-Hertogenbosch Fraternity of Our Lady, and on Alart du Hameel.
- Ship of Fools. Focus on Bosch’s moralizing works. The so-called Pedlar tryptich (here called the Wayfarer triptych), the Marriage Feast at Cana copies, the Prado Cure of Folly panel, the Lille Concert in the Egg panel, the St Germain-en-Laye Conjuror
- The End of Times. Bosch’s eschatological works. Two of the Venice Visions of the Hereafter panels, miniatures that may have inspired Bosch, the Bruges Last Judgement triptych, two Bosch drawings (Infernal Landscape and Hell Ship Creature).
- Exemplum Virtutis – The Lives of the Saints. Saints in the art of Bosch. The Madrid St John the Baptist panel, the Berlin St John on Patmos panel, the Rotterdam St Christopher panel, a sketch sheet with monsters (together four Bosch originals). Three Temptations of St Anthony panels by followers.
- Imitation of Christ. Christ in the art of Bosch. Two Bosch orignals: the New York Adoration of the Magi, and the Frankfurt Ecce Homo. The New York Group of Ten Spectators drawing, presented here as a Bosch original. The copy of the central panel of the Prado Adoration of the Magi in Aachen. Some works by other artists that may serve as material for comparison.
- Garden of Earthly Delights. The excellent copy of the central panel of the Garden of Delights (private collection) is one of the highlights of this exhibition. Furthermore, the damaged copy of the same central panel in Budapest and the tapestry copying the interior panels (Madrid, Patrimonio Nacional). The Vienna Garden of Eden panel by a follower. Other works of art that may serve as material for comparison or could have been sources of inspiration.
- The Artistic Legacy of Hieronymys Bosch. Bosch and his influence on later artists. Eight paintings and three engravings by followers, two engravings by Alart du Hameel, two engravings after Pieter Bruegel, two drawings by followers.
Because the large triptychs were lacking, this exhibition was not as rich as the ones in ’s-Hertogenbosch and Madrid (both 2016), but with 16 Bosch originals (11 paintings and 5 drawings), 28 works by followers (18 paintings, 4 drawings, 1 tapestry, 5 engravings), and many other works of art, a visit to Budapest was definitely worthwhile, and so is the information in the catalogue. Because the copy of the Garden’s central panel in a private collection is hard to access, its display in Budapest offered an excellent opportunity to get more acquainted with this highly remarkable painting.
[explicit 6th September 2022 – Eric De Bruyn]
