1. Home
  2. Education
  3. Art History

Artists in 60 Seconds: Pieter Bruegel the Elder

By , About.com Guide

Movement, Style, School or Period:

Northern Renaissance

Date and Place of Birth:

ca. 1525-30, Breda, Province of Brabant. His surname is also alternately spelled: "Brueghel" and "Breughel."

Life:

Though he was sometimes called "Peasant" Bruegel, due to the common folk with which he populated his genre paintings, Bruegel himself was a sophisticated city-dweller who had traveled to Italy. His seemingly simple scenes of everyday life are full of commentary on the religious controversies of his time. Early works display a wry humor, which veered into sarcasm with age. Even so, the compositions themselves are masterful, and represent some of the best loved land- and townscapes ever created.

Important Works:

  • Children's Games, 1560
  • The Hunters in the Snow, 1565
  • The Harvesters, 1565
  • The Peasant Wedding, ca. 1568
  • The Blind Leading the Blind, 1568

Date and Place of Death:

1569, Brussels (then Spanish Netherlands)

Go to Artist Profiles: Names beginning with "B" or Artist Profiles: Main Index

Explore Art History

About.com Special Features

A Smarter Future

Tips that will help finance your education, excel in the classroom, and advance your career. More >

How to Ace the GRE

Being well prepared is the first step; here are more essential suggestions. More >

  1. Home
  2. Education
  3. Art History
  4. Artists A to Z
  5. Artists From A to Z
  6. Names Beginning With B
  7. Pieter Bruegel the Elder Bio - Flemish Northern Renaissance Painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder>

©2009 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company.

All rights reserved.