A FAMILY DYNASTY IN COMO
Today the skies have
opened and the rain thrashes down. After four days in Italy and over 35°
this is a pleasant change but hopefully it will not go on for too long.
Long enough for me to get some notes down on the marvelous Italian trip
and also update my conference notes on the Underground art history.
Marielle and I are good traveling mates. As I rarely if ever travel with anyone it is a pleasure to share art moments and others with a good friend. Our tastes are not the same but she has taught me a lot over the years. Some months ago I discovered there was a retrospective of th Bruegel dynasty collection - nearly all of it coming from private collections around the world. For insurance purposes it was not sure if this collection would be shown elsewhere. I asked Murielle if she was interested and organized the trip. My idea would have been to visit the Villa Olmo and return to Paris the following day. But now I was told that the Lake was beautiful and that there were some lovely places to visit and that we could also have a short trip to Milan on our way back. The four days turned out to be action packed and we probably did more than most people would in 6 days.
We stacked out Como upon arrival. Found the Villa, walked around the lake to the centre of Como and my fist discovery was that Como was the heart of silk until I guess Europe opened to Asia. There are still some lovely shops around, especially the Seta which is oldy worldy and the sales were on.
We made our way to the Villa Olmo the following morning for opening hours. No Icom card, no photographs, no bags to be taken with us and the little to be found on Internet about this exhibition is virtually nothing and in Italian.
The Brueghels : Great dynasties of the world.
I was rocked by the dynasty. How many of you think of Pieter Brughel, the elder, his two sons and then that’s it. I am no art historian but was not expecting this.
Off the top of your head – how many artists can you think of beginning with B. Bacon. Blake. Bellini. Bernini. Bosch. Botticelli.... And, of course, Bruegel. But which Bruegel do you have in mind? There are about half a dozen, and four generations, and two centuries-worth of Brueghels to choose from, including Abraham, Jan Pieter and Jan Baptist, sons of Jan, who was the son of another Jan, who was also the father of Ambrosius, and the brother of Pieter, who was son of another Pieter. Confused? I was and am.
After getting more confused on Internet I discovered that their surnames are all spelled differently: some were Bruegel, some Breughel, others Brueghel. Also, they copied each other's work and signed it with each other's names, so that sometimes it's difficult to know if a Bruegel is an original Bruegel, or a Bruegel copy of an original Bruegel. They also collaborated with other artists, so that sometimes it's difficult to know when to call a Bruegel a Bruegel, and when to call it a Rubens. Yes Rubens and we saw a painting which looked remarkably like a Rubens just before leaving the exhibition.
Pieter Bruegel the elder was born between 1525 and 1530 some ten years after Bosch had died, the founder of the family dynasty and the first to start playing around with how he spelled his name. His early style was reminiscent of Bosch and I asked Marielle what the differences were for her.
Especially as there was
the most marvelous Bosch at the exhibition. «The Seven Deadly Sins» -
both of us had a problem in naming the seven!
Breugel died in his early 40s. His two sons, Pieter Brueghel (1564-1636) and Jan Brueghel (1568-1625) carried on the family tradition; Pieter copying the style of his father, Jan branching out and specialising in flower paintings. Jan's son, Jan Brueghel the Younger (1601-1678), painted landscapes, and his sons were also artists.
In the few notes I took- but oh so confused - I noted down that some member of the family had had 13 children who became artists.
The allegories are fascinating, especially as they seem to have been painted by all members of the family, relations and outsiders. There is one home page I found http://www.grandimostrecomo.it/the-works which does at least show what a vast dynasty this is all about.
And no, the famous Tour de Babel (1563) was not there. This was not a retrospective of work already seen. It was a discovery.
Marielle and I are good traveling mates. As I rarely if ever travel with anyone it is a pleasure to share art moments and others with a good friend. Our tastes are not the same but she has taught me a lot over the years. Some months ago I discovered there was a retrospective of th Bruegel dynasty collection - nearly all of it coming from private collections around the world. For insurance purposes it was not sure if this collection would be shown elsewhere. I asked Murielle if she was interested and organized the trip. My idea would have been to visit the Villa Olmo and return to Paris the following day. But now I was told that the Lake was beautiful and that there were some lovely places to visit and that we could also have a short trip to Milan on our way back. The four days turned out to be action packed and we probably did more than most people would in 6 days.
We stacked out Como upon arrival. Found the Villa, walked around the lake to the centre of Como and my fist discovery was that Como was the heart of silk until I guess Europe opened to Asia. There are still some lovely shops around, especially the Seta which is oldy worldy and the sales were on.
 |
| Como from the Villa Olmo |
 |
| Seta and silk on sal |
We made our way to the Villa Olmo the following morning for opening hours. No Icom card, no photographs, no bags to be taken with us and the little to be found on Internet about this exhibition is virtually nothing and in Italian.
 |
| Villa Olmo |
The Brueghels : Great dynasties of the world.
I was rocked by the dynasty. How many of you think of Pieter Brughel, the elder, his two sons and then that’s it. I am no art historian but was not expecting this.
Off the top of your head – how many artists can you think of beginning with B. Bacon. Blake. Bellini. Bernini. Bosch. Botticelli.... And, of course, Bruegel. But which Bruegel do you have in mind? There are about half a dozen, and four generations, and two centuries-worth of Brueghels to choose from, including Abraham, Jan Pieter and Jan Baptist, sons of Jan, who was the son of another Jan, who was also the father of Ambrosius, and the brother of Pieter, who was son of another Pieter. Confused? I was and am.
After getting more confused on Internet I discovered that their surnames are all spelled differently: some were Bruegel, some Breughel, others Brueghel. Also, they copied each other's work and signed it with each other's names, so that sometimes it's difficult to know if a Bruegel is an original Bruegel, or a Bruegel copy of an original Bruegel. They also collaborated with other artists, so that sometimes it's difficult to know when to call a Bruegel a Bruegel, and when to call it a Rubens. Yes Rubens and we saw a painting which looked remarkably like a Rubens just before leaving the exhibition.
 |
| Nuptial Dance Pieter the younger 1630 |
Pieter Bruegel the elder was born between 1525 and 1530 some ten years after Bosch had died, the founder of the family dynasty and the first to start playing around with how he spelled his name. His early style was reminiscent of Bosch and I asked Marielle what the differences were for her.
 |
| The seven deadly sins - Bosch 1500 |
Breugel died in his early 40s. His two sons, Pieter Brueghel (1564-1636) and Jan Brueghel (1568-1625) carried on the family tradition; Pieter copying the style of his father, Jan branching out and specialising in flower paintings. Jan's son, Jan Brueghel the Younger (1601-1678), painted landscapes, and his sons were also artists.
In the few notes I took- but oh so confused - I noted down that some member of the family had had 13 children who became artists.
The allegories are fascinating, especially as they seem to have been painted by all members of the family, relations and outsiders. There is one home page I found http://www.grandimostrecomo.it/the-works which does at least show what a vast dynasty this is all about.
And no, the famous Tour de Babel (1563) was not there. This was not a retrospective of work already seen. It was a discovery.
 |
| Jan Brueghel - Basket of Flowers |
 |
| The younger - date ? |
 |
| "The resurrection" - The Old 1563 |
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| "The Flatterers" - Pieter the younger 1610 (?) |
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