Hieronymus Bosch. Touched by the Devil | SztukArterie

Freak or genius? A mentally ill madman, creating oddities prompted by his illness, or rather a carefully planned painting artist, in whose works every element, even the smallest one, has significance?

Popular opinion has it that Bosch’s paintings provided inspiration for the 20th-century Surrealists, and no wonder, after all, his paintings are filled with bizarre imagery, monsters, obscene scenes and elaborate torture. All this led to a legend surrounding the artist as a mentally ill artist living on the fringes of society. At best, he was considered a religious heretic or a proponent of alchemy and the occult.

This legend, established over the centuries, is contradicted by quite well-documented facts from his life, which saw the light of day on the occasion of a large monographic exhibition of the artist, which took place in 2016. The lecture will synthetically try to answer the question: who in fact was the master Hieronymus Bosch? What was his role in the art of the 15th and 16th centuries, and what role do his extraordinary works play today? The talk will be based on the latest interpretations, as well as a number of previously unknown curiosities and analyses.

You will be able to attend the lecture live on January 31, 2024 at the headquarters of the Provincial Center for Cultural Animation, as well as participate online by watching on WOAK’s profiles. As always, you will be able to ask questions and share insights and your own interpretations.

The lecture will traditionally be hosted by Lukasz Wudarski.