I came across an article- “What’s So Contemporary About Hieronymus Bosch’s Apocalyptic Visions?”- about one of my favorite artists of all time, Hieronymus Bosch. The idea that his work is still relevant today is nothing new to me, seeing as I’m such a fan. Not to mention my own penchant for surreal imagery and human-animal hybrids. Even if you are new to Bosch’s work, you cannot help but notice the parallels between his art from the 15th century and the world of today.
As writer Dean Kissick states, “Hieronymus Bosch shows us not how scary the world is, but how ridiculous. The reason his paintings of heaven and hell appear so relevant today is because we are now living in them, and the boundaries between people, animals, and objects really are falling apart: 2016 is a world of avatars and branded mascots, a place with robotic household appliances that talk to us, and an internet of things, with human ears growing out the back of mice, and otherkin teenagers dressing up as their animal forms. Thousands of writhing naked bodies are only a couple clicks away, and most of our perverse fantasies have been visualised somewhere, even those involving octopuses and vibrators. The field really does have eyes and so much of what happens in the world is captured on video, from the coral reef’s weirdest creatures, to the orgiastic sex tapes of the super-wealthy, to the scenes of bloody massacres; on our illuminated screens, as in Bosch’s triptychs, scenes of horror intermingle with others of joy, so close to one another, and this complexity and contrariness seems the very essence of the present-day experience.”
Read the full article here: http://www.spikeartmagazine.com/en/articles/whats-so-contemporary-about-hieronymus-boschs-apocalyptic-visions
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