Hieronymus Bosch, The Garden of Earthly Delights, oil on panel, 1504, Meseo del Prado, Madrid
The Garden of Earthly Delights easily caught my attention by the vivid colors and the unique structure it had. Hieronymus Bosch painted The Garden of Earthly Delights on a 3 panel altarpiece called a triptych. When closed, the panels show the creation of the world untouched by animals and life. It shows the world free of sin. Once you open the panels, there are three stories, each having one thing in common, sin. The left panel shows the first sin on this earth, Adam and Eve from when they took the apple from the tree and were forbidden from The Garden of Eden. The middle panel shows what reminds me of current life today, everyone participating in sinful pleasures of lust. The middle panel shows the people in the Garden of Delights. The third panel shows a darker, fierce full, violent side of sin, more of an image that makes me think of Hell. The musical instruments are shown because at the time of the painting, these instruments were used as instruments of torture.
The Garden of Earthly Delights is an oil painting done by a man named Hieronymus Bosch. This piece is one of his most famous pieces of art. His work shows the typical Northern Renaissance style of enormous amounts of detail. Although it can’t be told for sure, Bosch’s work of The Garden of Earthly Delights seems to prove a point about the Christian Reformation. During this time, Rome created a trend of selling indulgences that would mean you could not go to Hell. The northern part of Europe was upset about this saying that this did not create true Christians and that it was a cheated their devotion to Christ. To me, The Garden of Earthly Delights shows that sins are sins (left and middle panel) and no payment of indulgence can save you from hell (right panel).
I enjoy this piece because of the story it tells. I think it still relates to today’s world. The closing of panels and the left panel still symbolize the third day of creation and then Adam and Eve but the middle panel can shows our society today. With adultery, crime, drugs and many more sins that are common today, God still looks down on it the same as he would when Bosch painted this picture. This picture shows Bosch’s bravery that he is not afraid to revolt and show his mind.
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hieronymus_Bosch_-_The_Garden_of_Earthly_Delights_-_The_exterior_(shutters).jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Garden_of_Earthly_Delights
http://www.artchive.com/artchive/B/bosch.html
Chelsea, excellent interpretation of The Garden of Earthly Delights! I hadn’t thought of Bosch as defying what the Catholic Church was trying to do by basically selling tickets to heaven. When I first examined this piece I followed a similar line of thought… 1) the first humans were created, 2) they sin and are rebellious to God, and 3) they pay for those sins. Admittedly, I only thought on the meaning of it only briefly. I was too fascinated by the surrealism he works into the images! You took its meaning to the next level by asking not only asking what it portrayed, but going to the next step and asking WHY he painted it. Your connection between the church and the painting seem to make perfect sense; this painting would then be associated with the Protestant Reformation. I’m curious as to whether you think Bosch meant for the image of the earth on the closed case to be wonderful since it was “free of sin” or whether it was painted dark to indicate that the creation of the earth was the beginning of the sins to come and that though it was innocent so far, it was the first step in disaster? I like that you pointed out how the meaning of this piece holds as much truth today and it did during the Renaissance. You gave me a whole new way to see The Garden of Earthly Delights… thanks!
You included all the key information required including artist, title, place, ect. Also it is always interesting to read why a person is drawn to a piece of work. Now that you had pointed out that you were drawn because of the colors and the unique structure it made me look at the picture in a new light. Also it was great that you made a connection with the current events of the time. As we all have most likely have learned that world can and does influence art. All the information you included in your blog really helped me understand the painting from a different view point. Your analysis on the painting as a whole and separate panel allows for readers to gain an understanding and appreciation for this painting. Also it is great that you made a connection with today and during the Renaissance. Reading your blog was very insightful and I hope to read a few more before the class ends this semester.