Hans BALDUNG GRIEN - The three ages of man and death (1539)

 

The three ages of man and death
1539
Oil on the table (151x61 cm)
Prado Museum, Madrid

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Four simple figures, an allegory: the three ages of human life together with inevitable destiny.

A sleeping girl is childhood, a girl is youth and an old woman is old age. Death is easily recognized by itself.

Does the end of all things have an hourglass in your hands, a symbol of time that passes inexorably or the inevitable that sooner or later arrives?

A strong realism permeates the bodies created by Baldung, the result of his very careful and prolific studies on real life models. He received very practical help from his engraving techniques, an activity that unites him with his famous master: Albrecht Dürer.

With Hieronymus Bosch he shares a passion for terror and suffering represented through fantasy.

Thanks to his Art he was able to enjoy great fame and well-being, when he died in Strasbourg he was one of the most important and influential members of the community.

Comparing artistis: Bosch, Cranach, Dürer, Ribera