Jan Brueghel I

Jan Brueghel I (1568-1625)

Jan Brueghel was the son of Pieter Brueghel the Elder. He is known as Jan Brueghel I, or 'the Elder' because his son was also called Jan: Jan Brueghel II, or 'the Younger'. According to the biographer Van Mander, Jan Brueghel was a pupil of Pieter Goetkindt. But before this he had taken lessons from his grandmother. In 1589 Brueghel travelled to Italy, returning north seven years later and settling in Antwerp. Some 450 works have been attributed to Jan Brueghel, including mythologicalClassical mythology'Mythology' comes from the Greek word 'muthos', meaning the spoken word, or story. A myth is a story about gods or deities. Mythology is all the stories combined. In theory, all cultures have their own mythology. Usually, however, the word mythology refers to the stories of classical antiquity. In these the main protagonists are the gods of Greece and Rome. and allegoricalAllegoryAn allegory is a concrete representation of an abstract idea or concept. It usually features a complex combination of human and animal figures, objects and actions. An allegory often contains one or more 'personifications' - representations of (usually abstract) concepts in the form of a person. One of the seven virtues, for example, is personified by Dame Justice. Personifications are often depicted by stationary figures, while allegories usually feature some form of action or activity. Allegories were popular in all forms of art, from classical antiquity to the late 19th century. They were employed to represent a wealth of different concepts, including life, death, transience, painting, seasons, age and the elements. scenes, floral still lifes and landscapes. For some years he served as court painter to the Habsburg Archduke Albert and Archduchess Isabella, who resided in Brussels. He probably owed his nickname 'velvet Brueghel' to the soft sheen of his paintings.