Pieter Brueghel the Elder

Pieter Brueghel the Elder (c. 1525 – 9 September 1569) was a Dutch or Flemish Renaissance painter and printmaker. He is known for his landscapes and peasant scenes. He is nicknamed 'Peasant Bruegel' to distinguish him from other members of the Brueghel family. But he is the most famous of them and therefore in most of the cases when someone speaks of "Brueghel" he thinks of him. From 1559 he dropped the 'h' from his name and started signing his paintings as Bruegel.

 Life 
There are records that he was born in Breda, Netherlands, but it is uncertain whether the Dutch town of Breda or the Belgian town of Bree, called Breda in Latin, is meant. He was the son of a peasant living in the village of Breughel.  

 Style 
In Bruegel's later years he painted in a simpler style than the Italian art in his time. The most obvious influence on his art is the older Dutch master Hieronymus Bosch.

 Themes 
Bruegel specialized in landscapes populated by peasants. He is often credited as being the first Western painter to paint landscapes for their own sake.

He showed the rituals of village life—including agriculture, hunts, meals, festivals, dances, and games. These show the folk culture of 16th century life. 

 Some of his Paintings 

Winter Landscape with a Bird Trap, 1565, Bruxelles, Koninklijke Musea voor Schone Kunsten van Belgie, inv. 8724
 The Peasant and the Nest Robber, 1568, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna
 The Three Soldiers, 1568, Frick Collection, New York City
 Conversion Of Paul, 1567, Kunsthistorishes Museum, Vienna
 The Storm at Sea, an unfinished work, probably Bruegel's last painting.

 Other websites 

 Biography at the Web Gallery of Art
 Pieter Bruegel the Elder at Olga's Gallery 
 Pieter Bruegel the Elder in the "A World History of Art" 
 Complete list of paintings. Includes all of the 100 proverbs from the painting, with explanation (in French). 
 www.all-art.org/early_renaissance About Pieter Brueghel the Elder
 Timken Museum of Art's "Parable of the Sower" by Pieter Bruegel the Elder 

Category:1520s births
Category:1569 deaths
Category:Flemish painters
Category:Dutch painters