From Bosch to Bruegel: Favorite Paintings

The Northern Renaissance is not so much a variation of a common process for Europe, but rather an independent, deeply distinctive phenomenon. German and Dutch artists such as Jan van Eyck, Hieronymus Bosch, Albrecht Dürer, Pieter Bruegel the Elder, and Matthias Grünewald did not limit themselves to copying individual forms of Italian painting, but embodied in their work their own original vision, imbued with a mystical worldview and symbolism. In their whimsical paintings, the religious intertwines with the mundane, God manifests Himself in the harmony of nature, biblical themes infiltrate earthly life, and a desperate search for truth is reflected, along with anxious premonitions and the quiet poetry of everyday life in all its details — as well as the absurdity and meaninglessness of life devoid of a spiritual foundation. This illustrated edition presents lectures by art historian Paola Dmitrievna Volkova, author of the famous series Bridge over the Abyss, dedicated to the artists of the Northern Renaissance, reworked and supplemented for the reader's convenience. A book for those who appreciate art and want a truly valuable gift for their library.