A Unique Flemish Painter:a Research On Pieter Bruegel The Elder’s Arts

Pieter Bruegel the Elder played an important role in history of Netherlandish Art. Unfortunately, he was snatched away in the flower of his age. As a result of many paintings on peasants and lack of documentary, he was misread for a long time, someone just called him ’Peasant Bruegel’.Today more and more evidences offered by art historians have proved that Bruegel is not only a great painter but also a humanist and his paintings are full of concerns on human.At first, I was attracked by his lovely figures of peasants,their happy lives and interesting Netherlandish traditions.Luckily,I found books about Bruegel by Walter S. Gibson, his research on figure of speech and Netherlandish Proverbs opened a door for me to get close to Bruegel.Then I immerse myself in main art historians’ achivevements of research on Bruegel and Northern paintings. It’s time consuming work to figure out the point of my thesis on Bruegel’s art. Finaly, with the help of my tutor and friends,I got it. In my thesis, I want to find out the elements which make his art so unique.I will begin with the art tradition of Netherlands, including manuscripts, panel paintings, panorama views, landscapes and Italian art tradition. Secondly, I will talk about the humanism in Bruegel’s paintings, because both of them play a key role in his art works.That is to say, he aways concern about the lives of Netherlanders. Meanwhile, the comparison between contemporary artists is also necessary, the contrast will enhance the extraordinary character in Bruegel’s arts. I think ouly throuth this way, I can find my own way to prove the uniqueness of his art.